“You can’t talk the talk without walking the walk” – Pete Taylor expects Tommy McCarthy to step it up
Pete Taylor wants Tommy McCarthy [18(9)-2(1)] to step up his game and back up the talk when he faces Chris Billam Smith [12(10)-1] this Saturday at Fight Camp.
‘Big Tommy’ takes on ‘The Gentleman’ in a now eagerly-anticipated European, British and Commonwealth title live on DAZN.
Although he has been his usual calm and collected self during fight week, the Belfast cruiserweight has admitted ‘CBS’ had annoyed him in and around the fight being made – he has also expressed a belief, he is superior in all relevant departments and should win the Matchroom Headquarters hosted fight quite easily.
It’s a shift in tack for ‘The Mack Attack’ but not necessarily a bad one according to Taylor.
The Dublin-based coach believes the European champ will have that extra bit about him knowing he has to back up the talk in the chief support clash on Saturday.
“Tommy doesn’t jump into them things,” he tells Irish-boxing.com when asked about the beef.
FACE OFF 👀 #McCarthyBillamSmith@Tommymac90 vs @ChrisBillam
— Matchroom Boxing (@MatchroomBoxing) July 29, 2021
Three belts on the line!#FightCamp pic.twitter.com/LKiaC41KFr
“I think Billam Smith got a bit under his skin calling him out before – I think there’s a bit of edge there because Tommy is not normally like that.
“He’s put a little bit of pressure on himself, but that’s all good that just means he has to step up. You can’t talk the talk, without walking the walk at the end of the day.”
The ever-demanding Taylor wants to see improvements from the Continental cruiser king come Saturday. The Leeds native points out there is too much on the line for any slip-ups.
“Tommy’s had a great run, but we have to be better for this fight because if he wins this fight he is in line for a world title. It’s a career-changing fight for Tommy.”
Photo credit Mark Robinson Matchroom
