Katie Taylor must serve suspension following Amanda Serrano win in trilogy fight

Irish Daily Mirror

12-07-2025

Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano have been slapped with mandatory suspensions after their third showdown. The Bray boxer, who had triumphed in their previous encounters, emerged victorious once more with a majority decision following a tactical battle at Madison Square Garden.
Taylor was favoured by two judges with scores of 97-93, while the third judge scored it even, 95-95, after 10 closely contested rounds. After ruling out another rematch with Serrano, Taylor, 39, was tight-lipped about her future in the ring.
She said: "I don't know, I just don't want to fight Amanda Serrano again. She punches too hard. I have a huge ton of respect for Amanda, she's such a warrior.
"It's a pleasure to share a ring with her. We have made history three times. We are history makers forever.
"I thought I was boxing very smart, she wasn't able to catch me very much tonight. But it's always close against Amanda."
Serrano, who has now been bested by Taylor in three of her four professional defeats, reflected on her strategy, saying: "We tried to stay with the long punches and one-twos, and it just wasn't enough."
The fighters are set for some downtime, with the first part enforced by New York State Athletic Commission regulations. According to the commission's rules, they are barred from fighting for a minimum of seven days, which would be standard practice regardless.
The regulations specify: "No licensed professional combative sports participant shall be allowed to participate in any combative sport match or exhibition in this State until at least seven days have elapsed since his or her last match or exhibition.
"And no licensed combative sports participant shall compete in any combative sport match or exhibition within seven days of competing in such a match or exhibition in this State."
The trilogy bout between the pair proved more tactical than their earlier encounters, with a slower pace and fewer punches landing. Both boxers struggled to establish dominance early, with just three punches finding their mark in the first round.
Operating at greater range than in their previous encounters, Taylor sought to dictate from the centre of the ring while landing effective counters as she enticed Serrano forward.
Multiple rounds were in the balance as tension mounted towards the finale, with Serrano pressing forward and trapping Taylor on the ropes during the fifth, though the champion managed to escape. Taylor sustained marking beneath her right eye in the eighth but claimed the closing two rounds to secure victory.
On the undercard, American Alycia Baumgardner defended her undisputed super featherweight crown via unanimous decision against Spain's Jennifer Miranda.