Taylor To Defend Super-Lightweight Title Against Khongsong

Looking to defend his IBF Super-Lightweight Title, Josh Taylor will head to his backyard of Glasgow, Scotland to face Apinun Khongsong. The fight will take place from inside The SSE Hydro on May 2 and will start around 2:30 p.m. ET.

“Josh Taylor is a truly special fighter who is set on becoming the undisputed 140-pound champion in 2020,” said Top Rank chairman Bob Arum. “I have no doubt he will put on a sensational performance for his home fans. I can’t wait for ‘The Tartan Tornado’ to return.”

Taylor is coming off of a win in the finals of the World Boxing Super Series against Regis Prograis. Prograis is set to face Maurice Hooker on a Matchroom Boxing-produced card. This will be the fifth time Taylor (16-0) headlines The SSE Hydro, who is also the WBA champion. The 29-year-old owns wins over Prograis, Viktor Postol, Ryan Martin and Miguel Vasquez.

“I am super excited to kickstart the new year with a fresh start and with a new team,” Taylor said. “It’s great to have the teams at MTK Global, Queensberry Promotions and Top Rank in my corner, and I’m delighted to be fighting on BT Sport and ESPN+ and even more so that this is happening in Scotland in front of a home crowd who have waited so long for this! I can’t wait to get the ball rolling with putting on a great performance.”

The 23-year-old Khongsong (16-3) earned his shot at gold by winning the IIBF Pan Pacific and IBF Asia Championships. The man from Bangkok has 13 wins via knockout and is on a six-fight knockout streak. His claim to fame as of now is defeating former world champion Akihiro Kondo. That was Kondo’s first loss via knockout.