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Willy Hutchinson vs. Ezra Taylor: How did surprise rivalry begin?
Itauma vs. Franklin: Subscribe to watch - Saturday
British heavyweight knockout artist Moses Itauma will be the focus of the boxing world on Saturday night when he takes on Jermaine Franklin, and rightly so.
He is, in the eyes of many, a world champion in waiting and is set for his toughest test live on DAZN, but on the undercard, a surprise rivalry is coming to a head.
Five months ago, light heavyweights Willy Hutchinson and Ezra Taylor were not on each other’s radar.
Rising stars in an exciting domestic scene at 175lbs, it felt inevitable the two would meet, just not this soon.
One clash ringside later, and a fight was swiftly made for Manchester’s Co-op Live, but how did this shock rivalry come about?
DAZN News spoke to both Hutchinson and Taylor on the birth of a rivalry that British boxing did not know it needed.
Hutchinson claims ringside seating kicked off Taylor rivalry
The first time the pair came face-to-face was during a November fight card headlined by the light heavyweight bout between Zach Parker and Joshua Buatsi.
In a joint interview with iFL TV, Hutchinson and Taylor exchanged verbals before a barge from the former sparked a brawl ringside, resulting in the two fighters having to be separated.
According to Hutchinson, this had been brewing throughout the evening, with claims of Taylor constantly sitting in his seat ringside.
Hutchinson claims Taylor fight is 'easy money'
Watch Hutchinson vs. Taylor: Face Off
“He was trying all night,” Hutchinson told DAZN News.
“I was sat there, and every time I got up off my seat, he kept sitting on my seat. I didn’t understand why every time I got up, he sat down on my seat.”
Then came the admission about Taylor not being in Hutchinson’s immediate plans.
“I wasn’t supposed to fight him, I was supposed to fight the winner of Parker-Buatsi, and they could not make the date so, the only person next in line was Taylor.”
‘We don’t like each other’ – Taylor
When the question was put to Taylor about how this sudden rivalry with Hutchinson came about, he put it down to “fighters being fighters” when the pair clashed ringside five months ago.
“Just fighters being fighters, I guess. We were being interviewed, it got a bit heated, he pushed me, I pushed him, we don’t like each other,” Taylor recalled.
But while there is a clear dislike between the two, Taylor did praise his next opponent for agreeing to the fight so quickly.
“We got the fight over the line really quickly, it’s amazing, in boxing that rarely happens.
“As much as he is a mug, he accepted the fight quickly.”
'Hutchinson needs to be dealt with'
Watch Taylor's interview with DAZN's Ade Oladipo
One of the reasons for the animosity between the two light heavyweights, according to Taylor, is Hutchinson claiming the 31-year-old is not ready to face someone of his ability.
As expected, Taylor disagrees with this notion.
“I don’t think anything of it. I interrupted him there and then, saying, ‘I don’t need more fights’, you can’t belittle or be condescending to someone like myself.
“I’m a champion in my own right.
“Clearly, he doesn’t believe that either, otherwise he would have declined the fight.”
It may be a rivalry which has not had a chance to brew, but already Hutchinson and Taylor are providing the perfect build-up to a clash that could steal the show in Manchester on Saturday night.
Watch Itauma vs. Franklin with a DAZN subscription
Knockout sensation Moses Itauma faces his toughest test against Jermaine Franklin this Saturday night, March 28. Watch exclusively with a DAZN Ultimate subscription to also get PPVs Chisora vs. Wilder (April 4), Wardley vs. Dubois (May 9), and Usyk vs Verhoeven (May 23) included.
