"Don't have the same energy" - Ben Davison suggests Josh Taylor was unmotivated for first Jack Catterall fight

Ben Davison has stated that Josh Taylor was not motivated enough for his fight against Jack Catterall, which led to a sub-par performance back in February.

Taylor defended his undisputed lightweight championship against Catterall in his home country of Scotland. Despite being the overwhelming favorite, the majority of fans believe 'The Tartan Tornado' was clearly outboxed and did not deserve a split-decision victory.

'El Gato' managed to drop Taylor in the eighth round and seemed to be the slicker boxer of the two. However, judge Ian John Lewis infamously scored the bout in the Scotman's favour with a controversial scorecard of 114-111. Meanwhile, Victor Loughlin narrowly scored the contest 113-112 for Taylor.

Watch the full fight replay of Taylor vs. Catterall:

Davison has since accepted that Taylor was not at his best but is anticipating a better version of his charge in a potential rematch.

In an interview with Boxing Social's YouTube channel, Davison said:

"He is pursuing that fight, almost like a challenger mentality, which I think Josh [Taylor] thrives under. I think when Josh is a heavy favorite — and its the same for a lot of fighters — they don't have that same... energy towards preparation. I think he's in a great mindset for that fight and in terms of the details we're waiting to see. But, Josh should be back in the gym next week."

Watch Davison's full interview with Boxing Social:

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Ben Davison claims Josh Taylor always wanted to rematch Jack Catterall

Davison continued by claiming that Josh Taylor was immediately thinking about a rematch as soon as he won the decision against Catterall.

"The fight was done. I think even in the hotel room after the fight, he was talking about how he wants to do that fight again."

Taylor recently vacated his WBC belt, and it is plausible that a rematch with Catterall will take place in late 2022 or early 2023. It remains to be seen if 'The Tartan Tornado' can prove his doubters wrong and display why he was previously considered one of the best pound-for-pound boxers in the world.

Catterall, on the other hand, will be looking to go one step further this time round and become a world champion by capturing the IBF and WBO titles. 'El Gato' has not remained quiet following his perceived injustice.

Check out Catterall's interview with iFL TV below: