Katie Taylor says she was ready and willing to jump into an immediate rematch with Amanda Serrano following their historic fight in New York.
The pair became the first females to headline a boxing card at the iconic Madison Square Garden, and put on a show worthy of the fanfare. Ireland’s Taylor beat Puerto Rico’s Serrano via split decision, the score cards 94-96, 97-93, and 96-93.
Despite most in the sport seeing the result as fair, the action was close enough either way to warrant a rematch, and, for a period of time, it looked like that’s exactly what would happen. Unfortunately for fans, it didn’t, and Serrano returned to the ring to defend her featherweight belts against Sarah Mafoud in September. As for Taylor, she puts her lightweight belts on the line this Saturday against Karen Elizabeth Carabajal.
Speaking to Ariel Helwani on the MMA Hour, Taylor says she was ready for the rematch, and that it was Serrano’s side who stalled.
“It’s a good question. I was obviously ready and willing to jump straight back in an immediate rematch, and we actually had Croke Park [Dublin Stadium] sealed off for one of the dates in September, but I think Serrano and her team just wanted a couple of more fights maybe under her belt before jumping back into a rematch.”
“The thought of having my homecoming fight in front of 80,000 people – I think that’s the only thing that could actually top what happened in Madison Square Garden. The thought is spine tingling to me.”
Taylor was rightfully disappointed when she found out that her homecoming fight wasn’t next up, and even went on to say that she felt the opponent could be anyone and not just Serrano. It seems that her management and promotional teams disagreed, and the Dublin dust-up remains on her bucket list.
The trail-blazing fighter returns to Wembley Arena, the place she made her professional debut, this weekend to face Carabajal, broadcast live on DAZN.