Liam Taylor vs. Tyrone McKenna Prediction: Taylor Has A Slight Edge In This Fight

This Sunday, December 11th, Liam Taylor of England will defend his WBO European Welterweight Title against Tyrone McKenna of Belfast, Northern Ireland.

Taylor, 31, has a pro record of 25-2-1 with 12 knockouts and 122 rounds of experience since making his pro debut in 2011 after an amateur career. His height and reach are not given, therefore we can't compare him to McKenna in terms of size. Taylor's fists have average power, with a current knockout ratio of 43%, and he has two stoppage victories in his previous eight fights.

Taylor's first professional loss came in 2015, when he was dropped in the seventh round in a 10-round unanimous decision against Tyrone Nurse. Last October, he was stopped in the second round by David Avanesyan in a fight for the European Welterweight Title. His lone draw came in a four-round technical decision against Chris Jenkins in November of 2019, when the fight was interrupted due to a gash to Jenkins caused by an unintentional head butt. Jenkins was defending his British and Commonwealth Welterweight titles in the match.

McKenna, a 32-year-old southpaw, enters the fight with a record of 23-3-1 with 6 knockouts. He stands 6-feet-1-inch tall for the category, but his reach is not mentioned. He made his pro debut in 2012 following a lengthy amateur career in which he was defeated by Carl Frampton, and he has already fought 172 rounds as a pro. McKenna's hands don't have much punching power, since his current knockout ratio is only 22.2%.

He hasn't stopped anyone since June of 2017, 12 fights ago. McKenna's first professional defeat came in 2018, when he was defeated by Jack Catterall in a 10-round unanimous decision for a crack at the WBO Inter-Continental Super Lightweight Title.

Taylor hasn't fought anyone notable or a serious world championship contender yet, and it might be argued that McKenna has faced stiffer competition thus far. However, he came up short against Prograis, Davies, and Catterall. This should be a nice domestic British punch-up, and while Taylor has the power advantage, I believe McKenna's height and hometown advantage will be enough to enable him pull off a tight, hard-fought victory.

• Liam Taylor to win for 1.81
• Total Under 8.5 for 3.4
• Decision W Tyrone McKenna – Yes for 2.37