Josh Taylor to Return Against No.1 Contender Apinun Khongsong on September 26th

WBA/IBF junior welterweight world champion Josh Taylor will finally return to the ring against IBF No.1 contender, Bangkok’s Apinun Khongsong (16-0, 13 KO’s)  on Saturday Sept 26th. The fight will be held at the BT Sport Studio (London) with the fight airing live BT Sport in the UK and on ESPN+ in the US.

Queensberry Promotions (Frank Warren) along with Top Rank promote Taylor (16-0, 12 KO’s) with this fight being “The Tartan Tornado’s” first after signing with MTK Global and Top Rank earlier in 2020..

“I’m excited to be back in the ring after a long layoff. The coronavirus had put everything on hold for a few months, so it’s been nice to be in the gym again and back to some normality” said Taylor.

“I didn’t want a warm-up fight, so getting straight back in there against my mandatory challenger is great, as it’s kept me fully focused. I want big fights in my career, so this is an important fight with my belts on the line.

“Training has been going well and I’m feeling fit and strong. I’ve watched a fair bit of my opponent and I’ve seen his strengths and weaknesses, and I’m very confident going into this fight. I can’t wait.”
 
“Josh Taylor is on a collision course to a fight for the undisputed title, but he must first get past a very tough Thai fighter in Khongsong,” said Bob Arum. “We are delighted that Josh’s talents will be shown live to ESPN+ and BT Sport viewers, and I expect a spectacular performance come Sept. 26.”

Jamie Conlan of MTK Global said “I am delighted to see the best fighter in the 140-pound division back in action. Josh has used the pandemic to his own advantage, using the layoff to spend more time with his new coach, Ben Davison, and building a relationship together.

“Khongsong provides a real tough test as he’s the mandatory for a reason, undefeated and a big puncher. Josh really needs to be on his game to keep the big fight with Jose Ramirez in the pipeline.”