Katie Taylor says she will take time to consider her future after emerging triumphant in her trilogy fight against Amanda Serrano, before once again reiterating her desire to fight at Croke Park.
The 39-year-old made it a third win against her Puerto Rican opponent, claiming victory by a majority decision at the iconic Madison Square Garden.
While it was once again a close-fought encounter, Taylor's effective strategy always had her in the driving seat. The first scorecard had it 95-95, but the other two judges scored it 97-93 in the Bray woman’s favour as she retained her undisputed WBC, WBA, IBF and WBO women's super-lightweight titles.
There has been growing speculation that Taylor may now hang up the gloves, with no fights pencilled in for this year or 2026. In her post-fight press conference, Taylor said it was a decision should would mull over in the coming weeks.
"I don’t know. I’m just going to enjoy this victory right now, sit back and reflect and then I’ll make a decision," she responded when asked if that could be her swansong.
"I will make a decision on whether I will fight again in the future."
The dream of fighting at Croke Park has seen some false dawns in the past, with the GAA insisting it has not been presented with a solid proposal or specified date.
Taylor, who has always said a fight at the venue would mark the pinnacle of her career, was asked by RTÉ Sport’s Paul O’Flynn whether Irish fans would get to see her fight again on home soil.
"Maybe in Croke Park…that would be unbelievable," she said.
There remains the possibility of another trilogy, should Taylor want to continue. England’s Chantelle Cameron, who enjoyed a unanimous points decision over Jessica Camara on the night, is the only fighter to have tasted victory over Taylor in the professional ranks.
The former two-weight world champion emerged victorious at the 3Arena in May 2023 before losing a rematch six months later. Taylor has previously stated that she would like any trilogy to take place at Croke Park, and was asked if she was open to taking on the English fighter again.
"Maybe. I think Chantelle has to see if she can sell out a 1,000 seater arena first. I think I made her more money than she deserves to be quite honest."
Promoter Eddie Hearn insisted Taylor "rolled back the years" with the manner of her latest performance against Serrano.
Not allowing herself to be drawn into a brawl, the Olympic champion’s movement and accuracy caused Serrano problems right from the off. Both landed 70 punches, but the Brooklyn southpaw was forced to work harder, throwing 151 extra punches over the course of the 10 rounds.
"I knew I was capable of a performance like that," Taylor added. "The other two fights as well, but I just got caught up in a bit of a war with the other two fights.
"I just outboxed her. I made the fight a lot easier for myself, constantly moving, not letting her feet set. I thought I showed a smart performance."
The build-up was notable in that Taylor was more animated than normal in her dealings with the media, frustrated with criticism dished out by Serrano’s camp in their previous bouts.
This time round there can be no complaints, Taylor inflicting the third of Serrano’s four professional defeats in a most professional manner.
"I don’t think anybody could deny I won this fight, so it is very, very satisfying," she said. "The previous fights, there was always that debate. There was controversy in those decisions, so I very, very satisfied now that it was lights out. I feel it was a dominant performance."
Despite the barbed comments in the build-up, the Irish fighter was keen to pay tribute to her opponent on a historic night for boxing on the all-female card.
"What an amazing champion," she said of Serrano. "We made history together three times. My name will always be embedded with hers, and I’m very happy about that. It’s amazing to have a rival like that in sport.
"I can’t believe this is my life. I’m so happy, so grateful."
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