Jack Catterall expects to challenge the winner of Saturday’s WBO welterweight title fight between Brian Norman Jnr and Devin Haney.
His victory over Ekow Essuman on the undercard of Chris Eubank Jnr’s defeat by Conor Benn strengthened his pursuit of a first title fight at 147lbs, but instead of Mario Barrios, the WBC titlist widely considered the weakest in the division, and the IBF champion Lewis Crocker – who like Catterall is promoted by Matchroom – it is the fighter set to be crowned the division’s number one he is determined to confront.
Catterall, 32, has been told that plans are already in place for a fight between he and the winner in 2026 – to that end he could be present at the ANB Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia when on the undercard of David Benavidez-Anthony Yarde they fight – and as soon as negotiations reach a suitable stage he will fly to Philadelphia to resume working under his new trainer Derek “Bozy” Ennis.
Norman Jnr, 24 and the defending champion, represents the first true welterweight with which Haney will have shared the ring, and his second opponent since he suffered defeat for the first time – by Ryan Garcia on an evening in 2024 on which he was dropped three times throughout the course of a fight that later became a no contest on account of Garcia twice testing positive for the banned substance ostarine.
The 27 year old was, in turn, unconvincing in victory over Jose Ramirez in May, and asked if he believed that meant Haney was still struggling with the effects of fighting Garcia, Catterall responded: “It’s a difficult one, because with that defeat comes the knock on confidence. We’ve seen him clipped a few times and hurt.
“There’s the knock on confidence – he had the loss – he’s been hurt a few times. Maybe that’s impacting how he fights. We don’t know the answers to that until he fights on Saturday. That’ll become more clear.
“Devin’s a technician. I don’t think he’s a power puncher. A very cute boxer. I wasn’t overly impressed with the Ramirez fight; I thought he was quite negative.
“I don’t think he has looked great as of recent. Very sharp; very technical. But I’ve just not been over impressed with the performances.
“I wish them both well. I’ll be keeping a super close eye on it. There has been small talks and discussions [since defeating Essuman]. I’m chomping at the bit – I’ve come out of the fight feeling healthy, feeling well, so this is my time, and hopefully in ’26, no matter who wins, we can get a shot at it.
“I might be there Saturday; I might not. Either way I’ll be watching.
“There has been discussions. I had a great victory – a lot of people there, and getting a lot of good feedback, so hopefully that now is going to put me in a position with the ranking as well to get a shot at the title.”
The victory over Essuman, 36, came in Catterall’s first fight since he recruited Ennis following the separation with his long-term trainer Jamie Moore.
“I’m letting my body recover this week – I’ll be back in the gym in December, looking after my body and ready to get to work,” he continued.
“I’ll be ticking over at home [in Chorley, England]. I’ll be back in close contact with ‘Bozy’ and the coaches, but as soon as there’s something concrete on my side then it’ll be time to get the flight over there.
“I’ve not been told what I can expect [regarding a fight date]. I’ve been told there’s a discussion around the fight that involves Matchroom, Turki [Alalshikh], the WBO and everyone else involved. I do believe them talks are happening. Nothing confirmed – I’ve been in this position before with the WBO and I’ve been waiting for some time.
“I’m confident I’m past that stage in my career, and things can get moving more promptly than in previous years. Either way I’ll be ready for that opportunity.”
