BARRY McGuigan reckons Ohara Davies will be a "genuinely dangerous" opponent for Josh Taylor in next month's title fight at Braehead Arena because even the Edinburgh-based Super Lightweight can't "walk through the shower without getting wet". Entitled 'Bad Blood', the match-up between the unbeaten, up-and-coming young bucks of the rival Cyclone and Matchroom management companies on July 8 promises to be one of the fights of the summer and McGuigan feels that Taylor will have to prove that he can take a shot if he is to claim Davies' WBC Silver title. That remains something of an unknown considering how straightforward the Glasgow 2014 gold medalist has made the first nine fights of his pro career, eight of which have come by way of knockout.
“It [Taylor's chin] may have been untested in the ring but you haven’t seen what I’ve seen," said McGuigan. "I’ve watched middleweights catch him right on the button and bigger men try to knock him about but he has a very sturdy chin. Obviously, I don’t want him to be hit a lot and that’s not the fight we’re looking to have but he has a great chin, no question. Very few people have put him over.
"I think, as a young featherweight in the amateurs, he was stung by a welterweight but no boxer has an impenetrable defence and he’ll need that chin in this fight because you can’t walk through the shower without getting wet," he added. "Josh will get hit so he’ll need to show that he can take a shot – but so will Davies."
As much confidence as he has that it will be his man who prevails, Guigan feels this is a match-up between of the best young fighters in the world. "This is going to be a great fight and a genuinely dangerous one for Josh," said McGuigan. "They’ll both be in the best shape of their lives but I believe 100% that Davies doesn’t have the skills set that Josh has. He can’t fight at the pace Josh can, he hasn’t got the adaptability and he’s never fought anyone like Josh before.
“I’ve always thought Josh was brilliant to watch and that he had world-class potential," he added. "When I’m weighing up whether to invest in a fighter, I’m looking for a kid with a bit of everything. He may not have it all but we can spend the next couple of years building him up and shoring up the areas where he’s a bit weak and generally making him better. Shane [McGuigan, hie son, Taylor's trainer] has done a phenomenal job with Josh and we haven’t lost his USP, which is his speed, his punch placement and his pace. We haven’t changed any of those things but what we have done is add power."
The fight, which will be screened on Channel 5, could also put Taylor on the map as a headline ticket seller in this country. “Davies will be relying on Ricky Burns’ supporters coming out to back him because he’s from the same stable but I’d be surprised if that happens," said McGuigan. “I believe we need to move him around the country and build up the fan base. Ken Buchanan was pigeonholed as an Edinburgh fighter and had to take himself off to the States, where he did great things. We’ve already taken Josh there and he’s fought on undercards in Vegas, New York and El Paso. The Showtime people over there love him."
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