Jack Catterall has been on the rough end of boxing politics enough times to know you can’t wait around and let the world pass you by.
Following victories over Josh Taylor and Regis Prograis last year, Catterall (30-1, 13 KOs) was all but assured a junior welterweight title fight would be next … that he would get his shot soon.
The 31-year-old had an iconic victory cruelly snatched away on the scorecards against Taylor the first time around in 2022, and it took him a long time to get back in the title picture.
Now, he is well placed to reach the top, but he isn’t resting on his laurels.
Ambitions were sky-high after a career best win over Prograis in October. Catterall recovered from a slow start and a knockdown in Round 5 to come back and drop his opponent twice, winning via unanimous decision. He was also sick with flu during fight week and battling with rib injuries.
After his hand was raised and once he had caught his breath, Catterall dared to dream in the bowels of Manchester’s Co-Op Live arena. WBO champion Teofimo Lopez was tossed up as a dream option. “I said we’d love to spank him,” promoter Eddie Hearn told the post-fight news conference.
The winner of Richardson Hitchins and Liam Paro’s IBF title fight, which Hitchins won in December, was also mused, but that didn’t come.
As soon as it became clear that he might have to wait a bit for either of those, Catterall asked: What now?
Arnold Barboza Jr. is the next man up and presents a tough but ideal challenge. Catterall believes he is a level above the American, but Barboza is unbeaten, and chasing a title shot of his own.
It’s the chance to get another big win and more quality rounds under the belt, but it will be a tough night, so there is a real risk involved.
Other fighters in Catterall’s position may have chosen to keep their powder dry in a division that is constantly moving. But for “El Gato,” who is ranked No. 2 by the WBO – with Barboza No. 1 — the gamble has paid off.
Saturday’s fight is for the mandatory position and the interim title. After being hamstrung by politics and empty promises in the past, his mantra is clear.
“I’ve been in a position quite a few years back where I was mandatory for a world title and I kept getting promised it was going to happen and I found myself getting roadblocked, sidelined, kept to one side,” Catterall told ESPN.
“That kept me inactive for some time and that’s happened twice throughout my career now.”
He went into his first encounter with Taylor off the back of a 15-month hiatus. It was another 15 after that before he stepped through the ropes again.
Now, he has banked three huge bouts in the space of just over 12 months, with another to come on Saturday. When he joined manager Sam Jones and Hearn’s Matchroom in 2023, his request was simply to be in the ring as often as possible.
Fighters will often say that’s what they want, but Catterall is walking the walk to match his talk. And his activity and ambition are proving fruitful.
“Jack’s career has unfortunately been plagued with huge inactivity. So when I signed Jack, we got together, the first thing I wanted to do was just get him boxing,” Jones told ESPN. “Jack’s fought Jorge [Linares], then he boxed Josh Taylor, then he boxed Regis Prograis and now Barboza. He’s in one of the best runs in world boxing at the moment.”
That run will ideally culminate with a belt in 2025, but the risk that it all comes crashing down on Saturday is real. Defeat to Barboza would be devastating for a boxer who is on the kind of run that Catterall is. He’s not taking anything for granted
“He can box, he can move on the front foot, the back foot and I expect him to bring everything,” Catterall said. “I said it to his and I’ll say it again, I don’t think he’s great. I think I’ve got the beating of him.
“But that’s all well and good. I’ve got to go out there and prove it on Saturday, which I intend to do.
“Make no mistake. I don’t expect it to be a breeze, but I do expect to come through victorious.”
Victory in front of a packed home crowd in Manchester could ensure that even the cruel politics of boxing won’t stop Catterall.
