Taylor lauds 'best fight in boxing' ahead of Serrano showdown
‘The best fight to see right now – male or female’: Katie Taylor has lauded her undisputed lightweight clash with Amanda Serrano in New York as a landmark for women’s boxing as they prepare for Saturday’s Madison Square Garden showdown
- Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano meet in an undisputed bout on Saturday
- Taylor talked up the enormity of the lightweight contest in pre-fight press conference
- The Olympic gold medallist said there was a ‘great appetite’ for female fights
- Serrano believes they are ‘deserving of the spotlight’ ahead of historic clash
Katie Taylor has claimed her upcoming undisputed lightweight clash with Amanda Serrano in New York is ‘the best fight to see right now – male or female.’
Olympic gold medallist Taylor and Serrano will make history when they become the first women to ever headline Madison Square Gardens on Saturday.
Taylor, who is putting her full collection of lightweight titles on the line against a formidable opponent in Serrano, talked up the enormity of the bout in a pre-fight press conference on Thursday.
Katie Taylor faces Amanda Serrano in an historic undisputed bout in New York on Saturday
Taylor is putting all of her lightweight titles on the line for the clash at Madison Square Garden
‘This is just a great boxing match,’ she said. ‘The best fight to see right now – male or female.
‘The fact this is going to be a sellout Saturday night, (shows) there is a great appetite for female fights.’
Fifty-one years since the ‘Fight of the Century’ between Joe Frazier and Muhammad Ali, the world’s most famous arena will host another transformative event in this showdown, with two women headlining there for the first time.
The two best pound-for-pound boxers in the world are equal to the occasion, with Taylor the undisputed world lightweight champion and Serrano the unified featherweight champion.
Taylor said the fact the bout is sold out shows there is an appetite for women’s boxing
The Empire State Building will light up with the colours of the Irish and Puerto Rican flags as the pair face off for a seven-figure purse.
‘We’re making our biggest payday, we’re at the Mecca of boxing, so it’s super exciting,’ said Serrano (42-1-1), whom oddsmakers see as a slight favourite after she won by unanimous decision over Spain’s Miriam Gutierrez in December.
‘I can’t wait for Saturday night to prove that we’re deserving of this opportunity of this spotlight.’
Thursday’s affair was largely bereft of smack talk – Serrano noted that the pair were ‘probably the two nicest fighters’ – but their promoters seized the megawatt spotlight for some verbal sparring of their own.
Serrano said the pair were ‘probably the two nicest fighters’ during pre-fight press conference
Promoter Eddie Hearn revealed around half of the tickets have been sold in the UK and Ireland
Boxing’s ebullient YouTube star-turned-fighter Jake Paul put $1 million on the line for Serrano, goading co-promoter and Briton Eddie Hearn into a handshake bet in front of throngs of reporters.
‘I’ve never seen this amount of media at any fight,’ said Paul. ‘If this fight happens again or one like it, we’re going to have to get these ladies even more of a payday … eight figures.’
Hearn said the event drew considerable interest from across the pond, with roughly half of the tickets already sold going to fans from the United Kingdom and Ireland.
‘We have to try and push the boundaries as these two great female athletes have done for many, many years,’ he said.
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