Natasha Jonas' trainer calls for action against Lauren Price's 'holding'

Joe Gallagher has demanded that the referee who oversees the IBF, WBA and WBC welterweight title fight between Natasha Jonas and Lauren Price on March 7 forbids Price from “holding”.

Gallagher will guide Jonas, 40 years old and the IBF and WBC champion, into the ring that night at London’s Royal Albert Hall, and revealed that he would ideally be preparing her for a fight over the course of 10 three-minute rounds instead of 10 twos, as is widespread in women’s boxing.

The trainer recognizes that if his fears regarding Price’s tactics are realized, those tactics can be more influential during the shorter fight that has been scheduled, and therefore doesn’t want to see his fighter undermined as a consequence.

“We would have loved it over three minutes – 10 threes – but certain people don’t want to pay for 10 minutes’ extra work, so what can we do about that?” he told BoxingScene. “There’s no overtime.

“Lawrence Okolie [more recently one of Gallagher’s fighters] got an awful lot of stick about holding, in his career. When it come to the [Chris] Billam-Smith fight, Shane McGuigan made a big thing about it, and the officials paid attention and jumped on Lawrence. 

“Well, I’m going to say the same thing. Lauren Price holds a lot, and [Jessica] McCaskill’s corner complained that she held 20-odd times. You watch all her fights – she holds. You’ve got to be on that, because Natasha Jonas needs to be allowed to work, and Lauren Price is running in, hitting and holding, and then waiting for the ref. We’ve two-minute rounds, and this is why we wanted the three minutes – to be able to cut her off, tire her down, and everything else.”

March’s fight represents Jonas’ biggest since that at lightweight with the great Katie Taylor in 2021, when she lost via unanimous decision. Price, 30 and from Wales, defeated Jessica McCaskill to win her title in May 2024.

“That’s not me being salty or being arsey,” Gallagher continued. “That’s just me as a coach analysing, watching these fights, and thinking, ‘She likes to hit and hold, and with her chin in the air’, so we’ve got to make sure you’re on it.”