Double world champion Josh Taylor has slammed the BBC for overlooking his accomplishments in the ring ahead of the 2019 Sports Personality of the Year award.
Taylor missed out on this year’s six-person shortlist despite a stunning year in boxing that saw him become a unified champion after just 16 professional bouts.
The 28-year-old won the IBF super-lightweight crown in Glasgow in May, setting up a meeting with WBA champion Regis Prograis which also served as the final of the World Boxing Super Series final in October.
In a very strong candidate for fight of the year, the Scot secured a majority decision win over the American to claim his second world title and the Muhammad Ali Trophy – accomplishments that now see him regarded as the best pound-for-pound fighter at 140lbs and among the best on the planet.
Taylor was a curious omission, writing on Twitter in response to the SPOTY and KSI video: “Yet no mention of someone becoming unified world champion after only 16 fights. F*** the BBC.”
Taylor was quizzed on his SPOTY omission in a recent interview with The Scotsman, suggesting the broadcaster tend to go for more “middle class” sportspeople.
"Boxing seems to get overlooked for some reason. Maybe because it’s the working man’s sport, I don’t know. It would have been nice to get nominated but it’s not something I’ve given too much thought about.”
