Josh Taylor Says He Needs Fights Like Teofimo Lopez To Keep The Fire Going

Josh Taylor is excited about the challenge of facing Teofimo Lopez.

Taylor is set to face Lopez on June 10 at the Hulu Theater in Madison Square Garden in New York City. He is coming off a controversial split decision win over Jack Catterall and this time out, he says he has the fire in his belly to not let that happen again.

“I’m absolutely laser-focused this time,” Taylor told Sky Sports. “That’s the mistake I made last time, I was losing sight of what was in front of me, dropping the ball in terms of focus and motivation. Its not an easy task but I’m definitely doing it much better this time. The last time around, I had a lack of discipline, a lack of motivation and that crept into the full performance. I never prepared well and, ‘fail to prepare, you prepare to fail’. I almost did fail last time.

“A little bit of complacency had crept in from where I had just been, it felt like I had just climbed Mount Everest in becoming undisputed world champion and I went out and enjoyed life a bit too much, ate a bit too much food, drank a little bit too much, had a bit too much pizza. I definitely learned that lesson, I will not be making that mistake again,” Taylor added.

With Josh Taylor saying he’s completely focused, he’s confident that he won’t just beat Teofimo Lopez but will put on a one-sided performance to defend his title.

“I feel great. I feel like I’ve got my feet back underneath me again… back to my old self. I feel brand new, reborn again! I’m firing on all cylinders and can’t wait to go in a few weeks time,” Taylor said. Given what I’ve achieved in 19 fights, I need fights like this that are going to get that fire in my belly and the nervous butterflies that keeps my motivation going, my hunger going and the fire burning in my stomach. Boxing at Madison Square Garden where everyone dreams of boxing and I’ve always said that I want to box there one day. I’m just so buzzing to get over there and get stuck in amongst it.”

Do you think Josh Taylor will beat Teofimo Lopez?