ON what was supposed to be the start of a new chapter, Josh Taylor’s career hit a new low last night as he lost a unanimous points decision against Ekow Essuman at The Hydro in Glasgow.
Moving up for his first fight at welterweight, Taylor, who was the red-hot favourite, crashed to a disastrous defeat that will now prompt serious questions about his future as an elite fighter.
Now 34 years old, and having lost three fights in succession, the former undisputed world champion at light-welterweight is now in the boxing wilderness.
This was a hugely damaging night where Taylor started brightly before totally losing his way in the second half of the fight against the 36-year-old Englishman.
Indeed, there was a plausible argument that Taylor lost the whole second half of the fight, starting from round seven and going all the way until the final bell at the end of round 12.
Josh Taylor is caught cold in his defeat to Ekow Essuman at The Hydro last night
The Scot was constantly on the back foot against his English opponent as he tired late on
The power of Essuman was too much for Taylor in the second half of the fight in Glasgow
As far as comebacks go, this really couldn’t have gone any worse for the man who was one of the pound-for-pound best boxers on the planet four years ago.
At the end, when the scorecards were read out, Taylor bowed his head. It was a look of resignation from a fighter whose best days look like they are behind him.
He will, of course, dispute that verdict. But the body of work against him is now too strong to ignore, going all the way back to his first fight against Jack Catterall three years ago.
Subsequent defeats to Teofimo Lopez and in the rematch with Catterall in Leeds last year meant this was a must-win for the Prestonpans puncher if he was to reignite his career.
But, in the end, it was a performance which brought the end of his career and possible retirement even more sharply into focus.
Taylor’s ring walk began with a mocked-up version of the Trainspotting speech made famous by Irvine Welsh and Renton, the character played in the movie by Ewan McGregor.
Choose life. Choose boxing. Choose undisputed. Choose leaving it all behind and moving up to a new division. Choose winning another four belts all over again and becoming a two-weight world champion.
That was the general idea. The home fans roared their approval as the Lust for Life by Iggy Pop faded and was replaced by the bagpipes for Flower of Scotland.
Taylor sports a nasty cut after a clash of heads in the seventh round as he slumped to defeat
Taylor was on the front foot and looking to be the aggressor over the opening couple of rounds and caught Essuman with a couple of powerful shots which snapped the Englishman’s head back.
The move up in weight certainly didn’t seem to be slowing Taylor down in terms of his ability to beat an opponent to the punch.
Another powerful left hook to the body landed flush on Essuman and it was clear that Taylor had taken both of the opening two rounds.
But Essuman came out swinging at the start of the third and had Taylor on the ropes buried under a flurry of punches.
It was clear that this would be no formality for Taylor against an opponent whom many others have dodged over the past few years.
Both fighters landed powerful punches in round four and both were rocked back on to the ropes at different points.
The pace eventually began to slow down slightly and Taylor’s bright start began to fade, with Essuman refusing to take a backward step.
Given that he is nicknamed The Engine, Essuman was only going to grow stronger as the fight wore on. Taylor, meanwhile, was in uncharted territory at welterweight.
By the time we reached round seven, Taylor had a nasty cut above his left eye following a clash of heads. A silence had fallen around The Hydro.
As was the case here three years ago in his first fight against Catterall, this was proving to be another awkward night for the Tartan Tornado.
The Tartan Tornado is dejected in his corner after suffering a third successive defeat
Heading into round ten, Taylor could only claim to be a round or two ahead, and even that felt slightly generous.
The explosive punch power and raw aggression which typified Taylor’s rise to the top a few years ago just wasn’t there.
He was guilty of walking into some big shots at times. Although still landing a few of his own, he was slowing down noticeably towards the end of the fight.
Another solid right hand from Essuman in round 11 stopped Taylor in his tracks and it was now undeniable that was looking second best in all departments.
How much of an advantage would those good early rounds give him on the judges’ scorecards? That was the burning question.
There would be no repeat of the reprieve he was given against Catterall in 2022. The scorecards — 116-113, 116-112, 115-113 — were conclusive.
But it was glory for 36-year-old Essuman as ‘The Engine’ motored past Taylor to take the win
As he walked away from the ring, you wondered when we might see Taylor back at the top level of boxing. If ever.
Elsewhere on the undercard, Lee McGregor and Nathaniel Collins clashed in a battle of the Scots in the featherweight division.
With a possible world title shot on the horizon for the winner, it was the unbeaten Collins who took the victory after stopping McGregor in round four.
Nicknamed The Nightmare, it was a clinical finish from Collins. He floored his opponent three times before McGregor’s corner eventually threw in the towel.
‘That was the best performance of my career,’ said Collins. ‘I showed tonight that I’m a world-class boxer and I can punch. I’m here to be a world champion.’
