Katie Taylor vs. Amanda Serrano: the ‘greatest’ women’s boxing match in history

It was billed as a game changer, the “biggest night in women’s boxing history,” said Bryan Armen Graham in The Guardian. And for once the “breathless hype” was justified. On Saturday night at Madison Square Garden, Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano – long considered the top two boxers in the world – faced each other for the first time in what was “an unforgettable encounter”.

This was a history-making fight in more ways than one, Gareth A. Davies said in The Daily Telegraph: It was the first time two women had earned “a million dollar purses,” and the first time that Women led “holy Mecca Manhattan”. The 20,000 fans who packed the arena witnessed a match of “fight, skill and wit” whose outcome was in doubt until the end. After ten rounds the judges were split, but two of the three favorites Taylor narrowly, allowing the Irish fighter, who has never lost a pro fight, to retain her undisputed lightweight crown.

What made the match all the more compelling was the contrasting styles of the two fighters, Michael Foley told The Times. Serrano, 33, from Puerto Rico, is a boxer with immense punch, while 35-year-old Taylor is known for her agility and ring prowess. In the fifth round, Serrano inflicted “a succession of wild attacks” on her opponent, but using all her experience, Taylor gradually regained the initiative and “topped an impressive reversal” by landing several big punches towards the end.

Taylor, who grew up in an “impoverished neighbourhood” in County Wicklow and initially considered a career as a footballer, became an Irish icon when she won gold at the 2012 Olympics, Chris Mannix told Sports Illustrated. She became a professional boxer four years later, at a time when there was little commercial market for women’s boxing. Since then, the sport has made great strides – largely thanks to their success and worldwide popularity.