Unbeaten duo Josh Taylor and Ohara Davies ready for Braehead bout
- Published
Boxer Josh Taylor is relishing working with Barry and Shane McGuigan
Josh Taylor insists the hype surrounding his bout with Ohara Davies on Saturday motivates him rather than fills him with doubt.
The Commonwealth super-lightweight champion from East Lothian faces the WBC Silver champion at Braehead Arena with both fighters undefeated to date.
"I thrive on this. I thrive on the big events and the big crowds. I don't feel any pressure at all," said Taylor, 26.
"He's trying to convince himself he's got a big chance."
Davies, who operates from the same Essex Matchroom stable as Taylor's compatriot Ricky Burns, has been involved in a long-running spat with his Prestonpans opponent on social media.
And at Thursday's media conference in Glasgow, the Tony Sims-trained fighter from Hackney was far from complimentary about Taylor, his promoter Barry McGuigan and trainer, Barry's son Shane.
"He's a bum - him and all his team are bums," said the 25-year-old.
"I call everyone in my weight class that is a threat to me bums."
The Scot boasts a record of nine wins from his nine professional bouts. In his short career since turning to the paid ranks after winning gold at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, he has fought three times in both America and Edinburgh, and in Belfast, Manchester and Cardiff.
The bout at Braehead is his first in Glasgow as his Cyclone Promotions management team try to build "a new national hero" in the same way that stablemate Carl Frampton is revered by fans in Northern Ireland.
A win for Taylor would give him a top 15 world ranking by the WBC and create an opportunity for future lucrative fights.
He is adamant that he is driven by this prospect, and not by the goading.
"He just tries to wind you up, but it's not working," he said.
"It's a little bit of bravado, confidence and just his arrogance coming out and a little that he's nervous and trying to build momentum.
"But with me, I'm just super confident from the inside out."
Davies on money, food, hype... and food again
Trainer Shane McGuigan, Josh Taylor, manager Barry McGuigan, MC Craig Stephen, Ohara Davies and trainer Tony Sims take questions from reporters at Thursday's media conference
Big-hitting Davies defeated Liverpool's Derry Mathews at London's O2 Arena in March to record his 15th win on the trot and claim the WBC Silver belt.
While he is ambitious, he has made it clear that titles are not necessarily the key thing that motivates him.
"I like the belt, but the belt doesn't put food on my plate," he said.
"The belt doesn't feed me. The belt's not going to buy me a house. Money is. You've got to put first things first. It's a business.
"I'm looking forward to it, but what I'm looking forward to more is after the fight, going to Five Guys, Burger King, there's a 24-hour McD's in the city centre so that's the first place I'm going to be headed.
"That's what I'm looking forward to more than the fight.
"As soon as my entrance music comes on, I don't see the crowd, I don't hear the crowd. All I hear is what I tell myself and what I hear from my coach.
"I can shut everything out, and I do shut everything out."
Former world champion Frampton on stablemate Taylor
Barry McGuigan is keen to see Josh Taylor achieve the same level of success as former world champion Carl Frampton
Taylor's training mate Frampton describes him as a "tremendous fighter" and "the most exciting prospect in Britain".
"He has a bit of everything - he can fight, he can box, his distance control is brilliant, his punch selection and variety is brilliant, he can grit it out when he has to," said the former WBA and IBF super bantamweight and WBA super featherweight world champion.
"I know Ricky Burns has done a lot and he's a great fighter, but I think Josh Taylor could be the best fighter to come out of Scotland since Ken Buchanan.
"I have sparred with him a few times and I don't like it, to be honest. He's very, very hard work.
"People look at his dimensions and he's a tall, skinny guy. He can wallop hard, he's very hard, he's gritty, he takes a good shot."