Anthony Taylor (fighter)
Anthony Taylor | |
|---|---|
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| Born | 23 June 1989 |
| Other names | Pretty Boy |
| Statistics | |
| Weight(s) | Light-heavyweight |
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (170 cm) |
| Reach | 169 cm (67 in) |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 12 |
| Wins | 7 |
| Wins by KO | 3 |
| Losses | 5 |
Anthony Taylor (born 23 June 1989) known by the ring name Pretty Boy is an American professional boxer[1][2] and former professional mixed martial artist under Bellator,[3] retiring with 7 wins and 5 losses. He is currently signed to KSI's Misfits Boxing and is the current MFB Light-Heavyweight Champion. He has an unranked record with Misfits of 7 wins, 7 losses, and 2 draws[4] bringing his total MMA and boxing statistics to 24 fights, 14 wins, and 10 losses.
Mixed martial arts career
Taylor made his professional MMA debut in 2015 against Adin Duenas at Bellator 147 losing via rear naked choke following a rocky amateur career of 5 wins and 8 losses. Winning only one fight in four following his debut, he was subsequently dropped by Bellator and joined CFC (Cage Fighting Championships) in 2017. He won his first fight for the promotion via decision against Trey Branch. Losing twice again he joined BAMMA in 2018 where he fought twice, winning both bouts, before being resigned by Bellator where he faced and beat Chris Avila.[5]
Boxing career
Taylor vs Fury
Taylor retired from professional MMA in 2020 to purse a move to professional boxing. Taylor return to the ring after to four years to face English boxer Tommy Fury (6–0) at the Rocket Arena in Cleveland, Ohio on August 29, 2021. The bout took place on the Jake Paul vs. Tyron Woodley undercard in which Fury defeated Taylor via unanimous decision.[6]
Taylor vs Avila II
Four months later, Taylor fought American mixed martial artist Chris Avila after obtaining two wins in Tijuana, Mexico. Taylor and Avila had previously fought before, the first time as an MMA bout at Bellator 238, in which Taylor won.[7] The bout took place at the Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida on the Jake Paul vs. Tyron Woodley II undercard on December 18, and saw Avila defeat Taylor via majority decision.[8]
A year later, Taylor fought English musician Ashley Rak-Su from the Rak-Su boyband, on the MF & DAZN: X Series 002 undercard. The bout took place on October 15, 2022 at the Utilita Arena Sheffield in Sheffield, England. Taylor defeated Rak-Su via unanimous decision.[9]
On December 6, 2022, Taylor's most challenging matchup was announced for MF & DAZN: X Series 004, being English boxer Idris Virgo (12–0–1). The bout took place on January 14, 2023 at Wembley Arena in London, England, in which Virgo defeated Taylor via unanimous decision.[10]
Taylor vs Papi
On April 13, Taylor vs Filipino influencer Salt Papi was announced for MF & DAZN: X Series 007 for May 13 at Wembley Arena in London, England.[11] Taylor defeated Papi via unanimous decision and was awarded Prime Fighter of the Night.[12]
MFB light heavyweight championship
Cancelled outnumbered bout with KSI
On June 8, 2024, English megastar KSI uploaded a YouTube video challenging both Taylor and American YouTuber Slim Albaher to a 2 vs. 1 outnumbered tag team match, after negotiations to face former unified light welterweight champion Amir Khan failed.[13] Taylor accepted the challenge on Twitter. On June 30, the bout between KSI, Taylor, and Albaher was made official, and was set to take place as the headliner for MF & DAZN: X Series 17 at 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland.[14] However, fans began to speculate if the bout had been cancelled following KSI deleting the bout announcement across his social media.[15] On 1 August, KSI confirmed his withdrawal in a Twitter post due to an injury sustained.[16]
Taylor vs Ericsson
Following the cancellation of Taylor's outnumbered match, his next bout was announced to be against South Korean former kickboxer Samuel Ericsson. Originally, Ericsson was set to face to face American influencer OJ Rose, but was cancelled after Rose was arrested. The bout took place on MF & DAZN: X Series 16 at the James L. Knight Center in Miami, Florida. Taylor defeated Ericsson via technical knockout in the third round and retained his MFB title.[17]
Taylor vs Silva
Taylor was then rebooked for MF & DAZN: X Series 17, but this time against Brazilian mixed martial artist Gabriel Silva, serving as the co-main event alongside the new headliner, Danny Aarons vs Danny Simpson.[18] Originally, Taylor and Silva were set to fight each other on MF & DAZN: X Series 13, but was cancelled following Silva's withdrawal. Taylor defeated Silva via technical knockout and retained his MFB title.[19]
Taylor vs Till
On 6 December, Taylor's next bout was announced to be against former UFC welterweight challenger challenger Darren Till, following the withdrawal of Fury as Till's original opponent.[20] The bout took place as the headliner for MF & DAZN: X Series 20 at the Co-op Live in Manchester, England. Till defeated Taylor via technical knockout in the sixth round.[21]
Personal life
Anthony Taylor grew up in alameda, California. He graduated from Encinal high school. Before becoming a professional MMA fighter, Taylor made money as an Uber driver and male stripper.[22] Before his professional boxing debut, Taylor was made homeless.[23]
Professional boxing record
| 12 fights | 7 wins | 5 losses |
|---|---|---|
| By knockout | 3 | 1 |
| By decision | 4 | 4 |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 | Loss | 7–5 | Darren Till | TKO | 6 (8) 1:05 | Jan 18, 2025 | Co-op Live, Manchester, England | MF–Professional bout |
| 11 | Win | 7–4 | Gabriel Silva | TKO | 3 (5) 2:54 | Aug 31, 2024 | 3Arena, Dublin, Ireland | MF–Professional bout; Retained MFB light heavyweight title |
| 10 | Win | 6–4 | Samuel Ericsson | TKO | 2 (5) 2:52 | Aug 10, 2024 | James L. Knight Center, Miami, Florida, U.S. | Retained MFB light heavyweight title |
| 9 | Win | 5–4 | King Kenny | UD | 5 | Oct 14, 2023 | AO Arena, Manchester, England | MF–Professional bout; Won vacant MFB light heavyweight title |
| 8 | Win | 4–4 | Salt Papi | UD | 3 | May 13, 2023 | Wembley Arena, London, England | MF–Professional bout |
| 7 | Loss | 3–4 | Idris Virgo | UD | 4 | Jan 14, 2023 | Wembley Arena, London, England | MF–Professional bout |
| 6 | Win | 3–3 | Ashley Rak-Su | UD | 3 | Oct 15, 2022 | Utilita Arena Sheffield, Sheffield, England | MF–Professional bout |
| 5 | Loss | 2–3 | Chris Avila | MD | 8 | Dec 18, 2021 | Amalie Arena, Tampa, Florida, U.S. | |
| 4 | Win | 2–2 | Jose Camargo Cabanez | UD | 4 | Oct 16, 2021 | Big Punch Arena, Tijuana, Mexico | |
| 3 | Win | 1–2 | Juan Manuel Rodriguez Chavez | TKO | 2 (4) 2:11 | Sep 25, 2021 | Big Punch Arena, Tijuana, Mexico | |
| 2 | Loss | 0–2 | Tommy Fury | UD | 4 | Aug 29, 2021 | Rocket Arena, Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. | |
| 1 | Loss | 0–1 | Donte Stubbs | SD | 4 | Jun 1, 2017 | The Hangar, Costa Mesa, California, U.S. |
Mixed martial arts record
| 12 matches | 7 wins | 5 losses |
| By knockout | 1 | 1 |
| By submission | 1 | 4 |
| By decision | 5 | 0 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 7–5 | Chris Avila | Decision (majority) | Bellator 238 | January 25, 2020 | 3 | 5:00 | Inglewood, California, United States | |
| Win | 6–5 | Brandon Faumui | Decision (split) | URCC: Rumble By The Bay | August 10, 2019 | 3 | 5:00 | Daly City, California, United States | Catchweight (160 lb) bout. Won the vacant URCC MMA catchweight championship |
| Win | 5–5 | Ryan Reneau | Decision (unanimous) | Combate 36 | May 10, 2019 | 3 | 5:00 | Stockton, California, United States | |
| Win | 4–5 | Mike Hales | Decision (unanimous) | BAMMA Fight Night: London | June 28, 2018 | 3 | 5:00 | London, England | Catchweight (150 lb) bout. |
| Win | 3–5 | Dean Barry | Submission (rear-naked choke) | BAMMA 35 | May 12, 2018 | 2 | 0:39 | Dublin, Ireland | |
| Loss | 2–5 | Adrian Guzman | Submission (rear-naked choke) | CFC 2: Champions Will Be Crowned | April 14, 2018 | 2 | 3:14 | Sonora, California, United States | Lightweight debut. For the vacant CFC lightweight championship |
| Loss | 2–4 | Brian del Rosario | TKO (punches) | Celtic Gladiator 17 | December 8, 2017 | 1 | 4:59 | Burbank, California, United States | Catchweight (150 lb) bout. |
| Win | 2–3 | Trey Branch | Decision (unanimous) | CFC 1: King of the Mountain | November 18, 2017 | 3 | 5:00 | Sonora, California, United States | |
| Loss | 1–3 | Ádám Borics | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Bellator 177 | April 14, 2017 | 1 | 4:12 | Budapest, Hungary | |
| Loss | 1–2 | James Gallagher | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Bellator 169 | December 16, 2016 | 3 | 1:52 | Dublin, Ireland | |
| Win | 1–1 | Victor Jones | KO (punches) | Bellator 154 | May 14, 2016 | 1 | 0:27 | San Jose, California, United States | |
| Loss | 0–1 | Adin Duenas | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Bellator 147 | December 4, 2015 | 1 | 2:43 | San Jose, California, United States | Featherweight debut. |
References
- ^ "BoxRec: Anthony Taylor".
- ^ "Who are King Kenny and Anthony Taylor? KSI vs Tommy Fury fighters explored". 14 October 2023.
- ^ "Anthony Taylor (Lightweight) MMA Profile - ESPN (UK)".
- ^ "Anthony Taylor".
- ^ "Anthony Taylor ("PrettyBoy") | MMA Fighter Page".
- ^ Rathborn, Jack (30 August 2021). "Tommy Fury vs Anthony Taylor result: Love Island star eases to points victory on US debut". The Independent. Archived from the original on 30 August 2021.
- ^ "Cris Cyborg, Julia Budd happy to clash for the title in January". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 29 September 2019.
- ^ Evanoff, Josh (2021-11-05). "Anthony Taylor vs. Chris Avila 2, Deron Williams Added To Paul/Fury Undercard". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2021-11-21.
- ^ Glaze, Virginia (16 October 2022). "Jay Swingler demolishes Cherdleys in one-sided bout at Misfits Boxing event: Results, highlights, & roundup". Dexerto.
- ^ "KSI vs. Temperrr Results: Misfits Boxing 4". MMA Fighting. 14 January 2023.
- ^ K. Lee, Alexander (April 16, 2023). "Salt Papi vs. Anthony Taylor announced for Misfits Boxing 7: KSI vs. Fournier". MMA Fighting.
- ^ Miller, Ben (14 May 2023). "KSI vs. Joe Fournier results, highlights from 2023 boxing fight: KSI clashes with Tommy Fury after KO win, Deji beats Swarmz". The Sporting News.
- ^ Schuller, Rudi (8 June 2024). "KSI provides major update for his next fight". DAZN.
- ^ Iskenderov, Parviz (2 July 2024). "KSI next boxing fight set against Slim & Anthony Taylor in Dublin in August". FIGHTMAG.
- ^ Yemi, Frank (28 June 2024). "KSI's 2 vs 1 Fight In Jeopardy As His Opponent Reacts To Withdrawal Rumors". The Sportster.
- ^ KSI (1 August 2024). "Hey everyone, I have some important news to share and I wanted you to hear it directly from me. The fight with Slim and AT is off. I have been battling with an injury (not my toe lol) since I began training for this fight and unfortunately this has worsened during camp which is why you haven't seen my usual enthusiasm. Despite my best efforts to push through the pain, it has reached a point where I can no longer spar or even hit pads or do bag work. On my doctor's orders, I have been advised to withdraw from Misfits 017 at the 3Arena in Dublin on August 31st". Twitter.
- ^ Meshew, Jed (10 August 2024). "Misfits Boxing 16 results: Josh Brueckner stops FaZe Temper, has tense faceoff with Le'Veon Bell". MMA Fighting.
- ^ Tucker, Bryan (April 16, 2024). "Watch Anthony Taylor lose it after being slapped by Gabriel Silva at Misfits Boxing 17 presser". MMA Fighting.
- ^ Lee, Alexander K. (31 August 2024). "Misfits Boxing 17 results: Danny Aarons battles Premier League champion Danny Simpson to draw". MMA Fighting.
- ^ Meshew, Jed (29 December 2024). "Darren Till faces Anthony Taylor on Jan. 18 at Misfits X Series 20 in Manchester". MMA Fighting.
- ^ Mazique, Brian (18 January 2025). "Darren Till Vs. Anthony Taylor Results: KO Highlight And Reaction". Forbes.
- ^ "Anthony Taylor: From stripping and sparring Jake Paul to fighting Darren Till... Plus dreams of WWE". 15 January 2025.
- ^ "I was homeless before Jake Paul saved my life and I think he can knock out Canelo Alvarez". 12 October 2023.