When Jack Catterall took to the stage at the Westfield shopping centre in Shepherd’s Bush, west London, last week, his presence served as a reminder of the many varied paths boxers follow – and the hurdles they must overcome - in their quest to reach their Everest.
A few minutes after Catterall was heralded as one of Matchroom Boxing’s new signings, Anthony Joshua weighed in for his fight against Jermaine Franklin. Catterall’s professional career had begun a month after Joshua left the London 2012 Olympics as a gold medallist.
For Catterall, the hype and fanfare would be a long time coming.
The decade since has been a catalogue of frustrations brought about by promotional politics, injuries to opponents, unfulfilled mandatory promises, and a scandalous points decision - and yet Catterall has refused to wallow in pity and, at 29, is set for a relaunch which might alter his life and career.
Catterall made an early statement in the pro ranks with an eighth-round stoppage of Tom Stalker in Liverpool in 2014. Stalker had captained the GB Olympic team two years earlier but Catterall’s performance against him embellished the view that a stint training on the national squad in Sheffield is often fruitful but not always a guarantee of success when the amateur vest is discarded.
A few months after beating Stalker, Catterall went to Las Vegas to spar with Floyd Mayweather and on to San Diego to work with Canelo Alvarez. Mayweather was looking for southpaw help ahead of his showdown against Manny Pacquiao; Canelo, likewise, wanted a specific style to prepare for James Kirkland.
The gains for Catterall, in terms of experience and confidence, were beyond measure and the venture shows the level of commitment he was ready to make to get where he believed he was going.
He has been similarly strong-minded in changing trainers, moving from Lee Beard to Haroon Headley and onto Jamie Moore in the early part of 2018.
I remember talking to Carl Frampton at Moore’s gym in those days and he was gushing about the ability of Catterall, based on what he had seen in sparring. I used to wonder if we would ever see in public what Frampton had witnessed in private… until Catterall fought Josh Taylor.
One of Britain’s greatest Track and Field Athletics coaches, Malcolm Arnold, once told me that when athletes get to the start line on the biggest stage, some of them grow and some shrink. And how Jack Catterall grew that night in Glasgow in February of last year.
The most striking aspect of his performance, for me, was how quickly he read what such a distinguished champion wanted to do. When Catterall needed his best-ever performance, he produced it. He left the ring with plaudits but no glory, destined to be hailed as one of the unluckiest losers seen in a world title fight in a British ring.
The chance to right the wrongs has come and gone - and might just be returning.
The proposed rematch against Taylor, scheduled for last month, fell through because of a foot injury sustained by Taylor and the Scot appears headed in the direction of a clash with Teofimo Lopez in June.
Taylor now holds only the WBO version of the world super-lightweight honours and the splintering of the “undisputed” status has presented Catterall with a range of targets to take aim at in search of that ultimate ambition.
Regis Prograis now owns the WBC belt and Catterall was believed to be close to nailing a challenge against the American before negotiations fell through. The Puerto Rican Subriel Matias lifted the IBF title earlier this year and all of his 19 wins (against a single defeat) have come inside the distance. And Alberto Puello defends the WBA crown against Rolly Romero next month.
Catterall believes he belongs in such company and in interviews to mark his link-up with Eddie Hearn and Matchroom, he has stressed the importance of activity. The man from Chorley has fought only twice in the past three-and-a-half years and while he might claim to be relatively fresh as a result, he needs to shake off the threat of staleness at such a pivotal stage.
The plan is for him to return at the Manchester Arena in late May, on the undercard of the featherweight title rematch between Mauricio Lara and Leigh Wood, and reappear on another DAZN card in September. Momentum is key, inside and outside the ring.
He once told Boxing News how he was literally lifted up into the ring when he made his competitive debut as an 11-year-old amateur because there were no steps in place at ringside.
All these years on, he’s getting a lift of a different kind. And a chance to show what Frampton, Mayweather and Canelo all saw in him a long time ago.