Josh Taylor was beaten in stunning fashion on home soil by a rampant Ekow Essuman.
Taylor was returning home to Scotland for the first time since his controversial victory over Jack Catterall in 2022.
Taylor was stunned by Essuman in his Glasgow homecomingLeigh Dawney / QueensberryAnd he was making his comeback for the first time since losing to Catterall in their sequel last year.
‘The Tartan Tornado’ stepped out in front of a partisan home crowd at the OVO Arena in Glasgow, where he took on welterweight contender Essuman.
Taylor started the opening rounds of the fight the more dominant fighter, looking crisp and improved at the bigger welterweight limit.
But Essuman came on stronger and stronger as the fight progressed, a real trademark of his boxing pedigree, and it appeared he had done enough to get the decision on away soil.
And he scored a well deserved win on the judges’ scorecards, taking the victory by unanimous decision.
The tallies read at 116-113, 115-113 and 116-112 in Essuman’s favour as he caused a huge shock in a career-best victory.
It was a damaging blow for Taylor, who will now need a drastic rebuild to return to the heights of world level, where he plied his trade for so many years.
Taylor lost for the first time on Scottish soil in his career, having won his ten fights previously in his home country.
And now boxing fans have called for the 34-year-old to call time in his career, with his sensational achievements still in tact.
Taylor was met by a wall of noise, as his homecoming walk-on sent the crowd into a frenzy, with Essuman looking to spoil the party.
Essuman came on strong after Taylor’s positive and sharp startLeigh Dawney / QueensberryThe Scotsman looked to start at a solid early tempo with things catching light early on, as he started boxing with real rhythm in centre ring.
Essuman struggled to cope with the speed Taylor produced when stepping in and out of range, as the home favourite impressed, looking sharp and agile early on at 147lbs.
But the underdog started to land in flurries in the third round, reminding Taylor he was still there and game with his increased output.
The pair began exchanging in the fourth and fifth rounds, the back and forth humdinger gripping fans’ attention in the arena.
As the fightreached the midway, Taylor started to fatigue despite being far brighter in the opening stages of the contest with Essuman in charge.
By round eight, Essuman started to come on extremely strong and land some big shots of his own.
Taylor was beaten and now faces calls to hang up his glovesLeigh Dawney / Queensberry Essuman was the winner and is on trajectory for world titlesLeigh Dawney / QueensberryHe really turned the screw and Taylor looked drained and out of ideas, as the pressure ramped up on him.
‘The Engine’ really lived up to his moniker in the ninth, showing some real cardio and intensity as the pendulum swung in his favour as the clock ticked into the final stanzas.
Many scorecards from the boxing fraternity began to tighten with Taylor being outworked as the concluding round approached.
Taylor was cut with blood pouring from his face as the final bell sounded from an intriguing night.
And unfortunately it wasn’t to be for Taylor, who was left dejected as Essuman was sent into delirium next to him.
It is a tough defeat to take for the Scotsman who now has a big decision to make over his future.
But for the victor, a potential route to a world title at 147lbs appears to have began to map out, with many seriously impressed with his aggressive performance.
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