KATIE TAYLOR remained the undisputed lightweight queen with a textbook win over mandatory challenger Karen Carabajal.
The London 2012 Irish Olympic legend returned to Wembley arena – the scene of her 2016 pro debut – to secure a unanimous decision over the brave but limited Argentine.
The female fighting pioneer – a former super-light champ too – went 22-0 and kept hold of her crowns with scores of: 100-91, 99-91 and 98-92.
Carabajal did not come all the way to London to throw away her 19-0 record and she threw meaningful shots at the Irish icon in the opener.
But the Wicklow warrior used all of her challenger’s shots as an invitation to slip and counter expertly.
Taylor was the shorter woman, with the shorter reach, but she used Carabajal’s long levers against her in the second by ducking inside her punches and firing.
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Taylor starred in a ground-breaking Madison Square Garden showdown with fellow legend and seven-weight champion Amanda Serrano in April so had to fight against complacency as well as the South American.
The pair traded bravely in the fourth and Taylor was tagged to make things interesting.
Taylor drove a poleaxe straight into Carabajal’s face in the fifth and was harder to hit, having found her rhythm and timing.
The Bray star was able to show off her defensive skills in the seventh when she was coasting on the scorecards and in tune with all of her opponent’s lunges.
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A clash of heads in round nine opened up a gash on the right eye of Carabajal but she never stopped swinging in her late effort to land the upset.
But Taylor was faultless in her latest defence and can now target a more high-profile fight in the Spring.
Earlier in the evening, Peterborough featherweight Jordan Gill was violently dismantled by evergreen Spaniard Kiko Martinez.
The Brit tried to defend his 9st European title against the 36-year-old two-weight world champ.
But he was dropped four times and left with a mangled face before the one-sided assault was stopped in the fourth.
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
