Katie Taylor wins controversial rematch with Amanda Serrano to retain tremendous light-weight title

One other Katie Taylor-Amanda Serrano superfight, one other closely disputed judging resolution. For the second time, Taylor defeated Serrano through a choice that left extra followers questioning the scorecards than praising Taylor’s expertise.

Serrano fought by means of a gnarly lower above her proper eye all through a lot of the within the Arlington, Texas, bout due to a sequence of Taylor head butts, one in every of which resulted in a degree deduction within the eighth spherical.

Taylor seemed to be preventing from behind all through the bout, with Serrano preventing with super precision, however Taylor’s sturdy end within the remaining 4 frames swung the judges’ scorecards to earn the Irish fighter a trio of equivalent judgments, 95-94.

Afterward, Serrano was clearly gutted by the choice.

“She stored head butting me, however we knew that from the very starting from the primary combat,” Serrano mentioned within the ring. “That’s what they do, not solely my combat, she did it with Chantelle Cameron. Hear, I’m a Boricua. I’m going to die on this ring it doesn’t matter what, regardless of what number of cuts I’ve on my face.”

Serrano’s trademark early-fight onslaught had Taylor staggering from the primary spherical when she linked on a imply overhand left within the remaining seconds. Serrano stored Taylor circling on her again foot by means of the primary 5 rounds because the bout became a streetfight — precisely what Serrano needed.

Taylor’s combos got here to life within the remaining 4 rounds, very like she did within the pair’s first bout, to drag off the comeback as soon as once more. Afterward, each girls mentioned they’d be open to a 3rd combat, however not earlier than Serrano’s coach Jordan Maldonado interrupted the post-fight interview to say one other bout would require higher refereeing.

Within the ninth spherical, Maldonado advised Ariel Helwani in a midfight interview, “(Taylor) is so soiled, she leads along with her head. She’s such a pleasant particular person outdoors, however she goes in there and is so soiled. … She leads along with her head, that’s her greatest attribute.”

In some ways past the scoring disputes, it was a becoming sequel to their bout in April 2022. That bout had been dubbed the largest girls’s boxing match of all time due to the setting and a tightly contested cut up resolution. Friday’s battle was much more crammed with spectacle, because the co-main occasion of a card that was positive to attract vital viewership because the lead-in to Jake Paul preventing Mike Tyson.

The bout was streamed on Netflix at no further value to its subscribers, an uncommon discussion board for the game in contrast with the extra conventional providing of a single pay-per-view occasion, although many subscribers complained about issues with the stream being continuously interrupted, a probable signal of the recognition of the occasion.

It was additionally staged at AT&T Stadium, the house of the Dallas Cowboys, making the ring seem tiny in contrast with the soccer area beneath it and the enormous screens above it.

Taylor received the preliminary bout two years in the past by weathering a surge from Serrano in its center levels. Serrano, 36, is thought for her heavy punch output and landed with much more success within the rematch than she did in 2022.

Serrano, who fights underneath Paul’s Most Worthwhile Promotions label, would have grow to be a two-division undisputed champion with the victory.