KATIE TAYLOR’s hopes of fighting in Croke Park have been given a MAJOR boost – but there’s one catch for fans.
Olympic hero Taylor has been bullish about the first homecoming fight of her professional career in recent months.
Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano fighting in New York The Bray legend made history when she headlined Madison Square Garden against Amanda Serrano.
Taylor won a show stealing main event on a points victory to retain her undisputed title in the biggest fight of her pro career.
Talks had begun with the Irish government about Taylor headlining a fight at Croke Park later this year.
However those appeared to be dashed when promoter Eddie Hearn said Serrano wasn’t interested in a rematch.
But the Puerto Rican fighter says she is willing to take on Taylor in Dublin – but both her and the fans will have to wait until next year.
Serrano told BoxingScene.com: “I would go to Ireland. It doesn’t matter where they wanna fight. But right now, I just need to defend my titles.
“Katie’s a warrior. She never backed down from any competition or anything. So, I think she wants the rematch.
“We want the rematch, and I think it’s a great matchup because we put on a hell of a show. We showed that both of us can fight.
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“We put butts in seats at The Garden. We sold it out. So, it was an exciting fight.”
Taylor is yet to fight in Dublin since turning professional after the Rio Olympics in 2016.
And while Eddie Hearn said only the Serrano fight could do Croke Park, he said getting it over the line is a must for him.
Hearn told Betfred’s Lightweight Boxing Show: “I think that has to be for the Serrano rematch.
“You’ve got Cyborg, you’ve got Holly Holm – these are huge fights, but I feel like they’ll happen later on in the year.
“We were pushing for September for Croke Park with Serrano – unfortunately, she didn’t want that fight. So I think Croke Park would have to sit on ice for spring/summer of 2023.
“It’s a must for me – 80,000 at Croke Park for the rematch. I mean, that was the disappointing thing about not being able to engage Serrano in those talks. But it is what it is and, you know, we move on.”
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
