How Taylor finally landed dream Croke Park swansong

“I’m definitely going to have to hold back the tears,” says Katie Taylor when the prospect of stepping out into Croke Park for her fighting farewell is raised.

It was a task almost beyond her manager Brian Peters at Friday’s news conference to announce the long-awaited appearance for one of Ireland’s greatest sporting icons, who will sign off on an extraordinary career on 5 September at a venue as revered as its headline act.

Promoter Eddie Hearn predicts “there won’t be a dry eye in the house” when Taylor appears in front of an expected crowd of 80,000 – yet another seminal moment for a fighter who has broken boundaries time and again.

On 31 October, 2001, a 15-year-old Taylor took part in the first sanctioned female amateur bout in Ireland against Alanna Nihell (nee Audley) – sister of current IBF welterweight champion Lewis Crocker – while 11 years later the dream of Olympic gold was realised having been a major reason why women’s boxing was even on the programme for the first time.

In 2016, a meeting at the headquarters of Matchroom Boxing in Essex saw Taylor, flanked by Peters and her mother Bridget, convince Hearn to take a punt on her ambitions to conquer the professional code.

World title belts – initially at lightweight – were won and opponents dispatched, while 30 April, 2022, saw her edge out Amanda Serrano in the first female boxing main event held inside Madison Square Garden – a sell-out and fight of the year contender for good measure.

How could this be topped?

Croke Park, home of the Gaelic Athletic Association, suddenly became the answer to a question that nobody had previously thought of asking with boxing absent from the venue since 18,000 took in Muhammad Ali’s 11th-round victory over Al ‘Blue’ Lewis in 1972.

The Serrano rematch was not immediately available, while an attempt to bring Taylor to Croke Park in March 2023 proved unsuccessful as the 3 Arena saw her lose to undisputed light-welterweight champion Chantelle Cameron before avenging the defeat six months later at the same venue to become undisputed in two weights.

Serrano would be revisited, initially in 2024 when Taylor squeezed home in Texas before outclassing her Puerto Rican rival last summer, back where it all began in New York.

Retirement was an option, but the Croke Park itch remained one that had to be scratched.

“I had a conversation with Eddie [Hearn, promoter] after the last fight and I said, ‘what else is there to chase other than Croke Park?’,” said Taylor.

“This is going to be the most iconic moment of my career.

“We’ve had the headline in Madison Square Garden, amazing nights in the 3 Arena, the Olympic Games, some amazing moments in my career but this night is going to be the most iconic moment of my career and that’s saying something.”

‘This is Matchroom’s greatest moment’ – Hearn

Still, 80,000 seats is a lot to shift and in today’s environment, only the top heavyweights, plus a handful of other stars including Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez and Naoya Inoue can hit such heights.

For Taylor, 39, and her team to have ambitions to command such an audience is evidence of the reverence in which she is held.

After Friday’s news conference, the Bray native and team set off on a four-day promotional tour around the island of Ireland, beginning in her home town.

It may be a farewell, but a test and not a testimonial is how Taylor wants to sign off.

The opportunity to regain the WBC portion of the light-welterweight title [which was made vacant after last year’s Serrano win] and retire undisputed is the dream.

But she has no designs on getting swept up in the emotion with undefeated Frenchwoman Flora Pili standing in her way.

The Croke Park door appeared shut when an agreement could not be reached between Hearn and stadium authorities three years ago, so what has changed?

With costs to hire the stadium “twice as much as Wembley” according to the Matchroom chairman, it was difficult to see how the impasse would be broken.

For the company there is “not a whole lot financially” to be gained, but just as the rematch between Carl Froch and George Groves at Wembley Stadium in 2014 proved a big night for Matchroom, 80,000 at Croke Park can do likewise according to Hearn.

“That a female is fighting in front of 80,000 people, I think it’s the greatest moment of our [Matchroom’s] boxing history,” he said.

“We’re not going to be making much money on the night, but this is about more than that. My dad [Barry, Matchroom founder and president] might kill me, but what does it really matter what we make on a night like this?

“What we leave with is something we’ll never forget and also it’s important for the brand of our business.”

‘Women’s boxing has come a long way in 10 years’

The second and third fights against Serrano, which took place under Jake Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions banner and broadcast live on Netflix, have helped make Taylor’s story “bigger” and gave Matchroom the confidence to pursue Croke Park, according to Hearn.

The gamble is now worth it, just as it was 10 years ago when Taylor first sent a direct message to request a meeting to explore the possibility of working with Hearn.

What has followed went beyond anyone could expect, while the knock-on effect has helped women’s boxing emerge fully from the shadows.

“When I first started pro, women’s boxing was pretty much non-existent, nobody cared about it; we were making pennies and here we are 10 years later,” she reflected.

“We broke boundaries with the paydays – that’s just remarkable progress of one generation.

“When I walk out to that stadium, to the ring one last time, when I even think about it it gets me emotional.

“They’re not sad tears, they’re very happy tears.”

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