Josh Taylor v Jack Catterall: British Boxing Board of Control downgrade official and petition for Chorley star to get another world title shot

The Chorley star was widely considered a clear victor in his meeting with the Scottish star for the undisputed world super-lightweight titles in Glasgow on February 26.

His supreme 12-round display went unrewarded though as two or the three judges scored in favour of the home favourite, leading to an outcry which has even led to Chorley MP and Speaker of the House of Commons Sir Lindsay Hoyle contacting police.

The BBBoC also vowed to investigate with their attention focused on John-Lewis’ card, the Kent official giving Taylor the verdict by three rounds.

He has been downgraded from an ‘A Star Class’ to ‘A Class’ official with the board also saying they will be contacting the four governing bodies involved - the WBC, WBO, IBF and WBA - to ask that Catterall is made the next challenger for the titles now set to be vacated by Taylor as he moves up a division to welterweight.

It is understood the WBO have already indicated they will be making the 28-year-old their mandatory contender, Catterall having held that position for a significant amount of time as he waited for his shot at the big one.

The BBBoC judgement reads: “Following an internal review of the scoring of the Josh Taylor v Jack Catterall contest by all three appointed judges, the Stewards of the Board decided to call Mr. Ian John-Lewis to appear before them to explain his returned card.

“Having considered Mr Ian John-Lewis’ explanation, the Stewards of the Board decided to downgrade Mr. John-Lewis from an A Star Class to an A Class Official.

“Whilst the Board were satisfied that Mr John-Lewis’ scorecard did not affect the overall result of the contest, the Stewards of the Board did have issue with his margin.

“As the regulatory body for the sport in Great Britain, the British Boxing Board of Control continues to improve and maintain the high-quality and consistency in scoring by our licensed officials.

“As such, the Stewards of the Board have further decided that in addition to each A Star Class Official being evaluated after each bout, as per current procedure, they will now also be subject to a separate individual annual review.

“Finally, the British Boxing Board of Control have contacted the WBO, WBC, IBF and WBA supporting Jack Catterall to be made mandatory challenger for each or all championship sanctioning bodies.”

It is thanks to our loyal readers that we can continue to provide the trusted news, analysis and insight that matters to you. For unlimited access to our unrivalled local reporting, you can take out a subscription HERE and help support the work of our dedicated team of reporters.