MANCHESTER, England — Through sheer will and determination, Jack Catterall has forced himself into a junior welterweight world title fight.
It hasn’t been easy. Two brutal bouts with Josh Taylor and multiple injuries have steered Catterall (30-1 13 KOs) down the long road, but he is finally, undeniably, on the cusp.
The only question now is: Who next?
Promoter Eddie Hearn had all but assured the winner between Catterall and Regis Prograis in Manchester on Saturday would go on to face the winner of Liam Paro and Richardson Hitchins, who fight on Dec. 7. Paro holds the IBF belt, and all fighters are under the Matchroom banner, so stumbling blocks appear few and far between.
The tantalising prospect of hosting WBO champion Teofimo Lopez in Manchester was pondered, if only for a brief second, before the more realistic option of Paro or Hitchins, home or away, was discussed seriously in the aftermath.
“[Regis] said… ‘this is the best guy I’ve ever fought by a mile,'” Hearn told a post-fight news conference.
“I think Jack Catterall’s one of the most underrated fighters in the world. With regards to Teofimo Lopez, I said we’d love to spank him, but he is a very good fighter and he is a massive star. I doubt he would come to Manchester, but it would be some night, wouldn’t it? Can you imagine?”
“Liam Paro is going to say ‘what about Australia? Which is something we’ll look at as well. If Hitchins wins, he’ll say ‘What about New York?’ We’ll look at that as well'”
So all options are on the table. The answer from Catterall was simply anywhere, anytime.
“The fight against Regis, we knew it was going to be a risk, but that risk put me in a great position to call the shots and hopefully we get a shot at the IBF early next year,” Catterall told his post-fight news conference.
“There’s four world champions. I’m open to fighting any of them.”
With the wait he has had, and a win against a former two-time champion now under his belt, it’s easy to see why Catterall won’t care who he gets next. He has certainly grown into a fighter fit to be a champion.
A cagey opening to Saturday’s fight forced Catterall’s corner to tell him he needed to get going around the halfway point. He was knocked down in Round 5 but he responded, closing out the fight in style with two knockdowns in Round 9 which significantly swung the momentum.
He showed the aggression and grit that was on display in his victory over Taylor in May, and proved his camp — who had warned in the week his power was underestimated — to be right.
Hearn also believes 24 rounds against Taylor and wins over Jorge Linares and now Prograis will stand his charge in good stead regardless of who comes through the ropes next.
“I think his IQ is really good. I think his jab is underrated I think his power is underrated. He can fight on the inside, he’s tough he’s got a good chin, I think he’s got everything,” Hearn said. “If I put him in with Teofimo Lopez, Devin Haney, Ryan Garcia, I believe he is in 50-50 fights.”
But with victory came the acknowledgement there will need to be another level to win a belt.
“I’ll watch it back but at every fight at this level you learn so much,” Catterall said.
“Regis is a two-time world champion and he’s been in with some of the best. He gave us some great props at the end… I’m my worst critic. There’s always room for improvements so I’ll study the tape and I’ll be better.”