Novel York-the first thing you noticed was Dan and the density of the crowd, Madison Square Garden again packed for Amanda Serrano and Katie Taylor, standard carriers for professional sport, which barely existed ten years ago: women’s boxing. Secondly, flags, banners meaning two islands, Ireland and Puerto Rico, whose peoples fight here in this city and this arena, longer than most of us remember.
Indeed, despite the whole noise, maybe despite this-something was historic in full throats and war shouts preceding Taylor and Serrano in the ring. The first two fights in this historical, though skewed trilogy were wars. The second part, the damn matter in November last year, set a record of blows in a 10-round fight of women. It would undoubtedly be the same.
“Where is the sensitive Taylor?” I asked Serrano in the behind schedule Thursday afternoon.
“Well, he is an Irish warrior,” said Serrano, a seven-member master of Brooklyn through Puerto Rico. I asked what she meant.
“It is as tough as they are coming. But it will always fight. And this makes it sensitive because I hit harder than her.”
Serrano is a heavier woman. A fight would be in her favor. I thought that Taylor could not resist what with the serenade of Irish fans-oh-lay-oh-lay-lay-lay-oh-lay-where was preparing to enter the ring.
In fact, Taylor cited her debt to the legions of Irish fans as soon as the fight ended. “I just love you all and I love my country,” she said. “I have the impression that when I get here, I represent my country. I represent each of you.”
But this glorious, expected war never happened. Taylor, at the age of 39, had the athlete’s legs for a full two decades younger. The two -time Olympian, who since then saw her part of the Ring wars, hurt as graceful as ever. This was set for Serrano. She fought at home. Her promoter, the most valuable promotions, was ran by the program. Although the undisputed championship weighing 140 pounds was threatened, the 136-pound scale to catch favored Serrano.
“I love this kind of challenges,” said Taylor.
This turned out to be less physical than mental. Taylor never allowed her to become a fight. She never gave in to her powerful sense of aggression. She left with the mouse under the right eye, as a result of the long left side of Serrano.
In addition, Serrano did not cause any damage. She could never solve the distance. She spent most of the night, chasing and disappeared. According to the Compararch, Serrano left 312 out of 382 blows she threw.
It wasn’t a thriller. Taylor herself made a mistake after caution, having vigorous respect for Serrano’s power. “He strikes too tough,” Taylor would say. Still, in the sixth round, the pattern became brilliant, just like the songs sounded through the garden: “Ka-Tie! Ka-Tie! Ka-Tie!”
“I apparently planned to come here and fight disciplined and wise,” she said. “I planned to do it twice, but I failed. But fortunately I was able to make a game plan very well and move my legs.”
As the trilogs, it was just as peculiar as historical. While Taylor went to the third 2-0 fight, she could probably reduce 2-0. However, not Friday. If their third fight was the least violent, it also provided the most essential result.
“I also want to thank Amanda Serrano, what an amazing warrior,” she said. “Three times we told a story together … Such a privilege of sharing it with her. … We are a story forever. My name is forever embedded in Amandie.”
When it ended, you could see how Serrano was trying to stop the flood of emotions. “They tried something different,” she said. “It was about the smarter action, not harder. I tried to keep the distance, I tried not to go and fight with it, because apparently it did not work for the first two fights, so we just tried to stick to long blows, one twenty and I think that it was simply not enough.”
One judge even had it. Two called 97-93 for Taylor. I had six rounds to three for Taylor, reluctantly calling the first round a draw. Still, he misses a larger point. “I really want to thank you for each of you coming out and supporting women’s boxing,” Serrano continued, turning to fans, both her and Taylor. “It was an amazing night for us, a woman, and I cry because everyone because of you.”
The biggest names in the male game have problems filling in a huge room in the garden, and the configuration of the seats is often reduced. But Taylor and Serrano sold it twice since 2022. Unlike men, no one has to beg or bribe them to fight. Serrano started boxing to mark with her older sister, Cindy. “I never thought I would become a world champion,” she told me on Thursday afternoon. I never thought it would be affluent. Now he earns millions.
Nine years have passed since Serrano became only the second warrior Puerto Rican, who won the titles in four divisions (the second is Miguel Cotto). Her purse tonight? “Four thousand dollars,” she said. “I thought about giving up. I was thinking about leaving many times.”
I asked her what she was proud of.
“Noise,” she said.
Serrano was very specific here. She referred to the sound that accompanies her input, and Taylor’s in Madison Square Garden-Ten full-length DIN in the entire swing of the banner.
“This sound,” she said. “He opens the door for all these adolescent women.”
Terence Crawford faced and defeated 42 different opponents during a 17-year career, but super-middleweight icon Carl Froch believes that there is one welterweight who would have put an end to Crawford’s unbeaten streak if they were to meet in their primes.
Crawford became the first post-war boxer to claim the undisputed title in three separate weight divisions last September; a run which began as a super-lightweight in 2015 by defeating Thomas Dulorme, then unifying against Viktor Postol before halting Julius Indongo in an undisputed title showdown.
‘Bud’ then moved on to the welterweight scene and knocked out Jeff Horn to capture the WBO world title on his 147lb debut, making five defences of the title before colliding with fierce rival and three-belt unified titleholder, Errol Spence Jr, in 2023.
In a unforgettable fight, Crawford brutally beat Spence down in an authoritative ninth-round stoppage win to capture the undisputed welterweight throne. Talk then turned to an unprecedented three-weight move up to super-middleweight to take on Canelo Alvarez.
After stopping off at super-welterweight to dethrone Israil Madrimov on his way up, Crawford debuted at super-middleweight in a challenge for Canelo’s undisputed crown and outboxed the Mexican superstar in an iconic win last year, hanging up the gloves three months later.
Despite those legendary achievements, Froch picked Floyd Mayweather Jr to come out on top in a potential fantasy fight against the Omaha southpaw, in an episode of ‘Froch on Fighting’.
Mayweather’s achievements speak for themselves, retiring with a perfect 50-0 unbeaten record after claiming world honours in five divisions, with his most impressive reign coming at 147lbs, where he defeated the likes of Manny Pacquiao and Shane Mosley.
Mayweather has been rumoured to make a comeback, but while there would be huge finances that would be on offer, Crawford has revealed that he would have no interest in ending his retirement for a bout with ‘TBE’, believing that the 49-year-old is ‘old’ and ‘done’.
Terence Crawford has been hailed by many as the best fighter of this generation following his retirement, and now WBC welterweight title hopeful Conor Benn has shared how he thinks ‘Bud’ would have fared against six-division world champion Oscar De La Hoya.
Crawford became boxing’s sixth five-division world champion with an iconic win over Canelo Alvarez back in September; joining Thomas Hearns, Sugar Ray Leonard, De La Hoya, Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao in that elite and exclusive club reserved only for legends of the sport.
Of that group, only De La Hoya and Pacquiao have gone on to conquer a sixth division, with De La Hoya’s 2004 WBO middleweight world title win over Felix Sturm seeing the Californian become the first boxer to ever become a sextuple champion.
Crawford could have joined ‘’The Golden Boy’ and ‘Pac-Man’ in achieving that feat, having been offered a middleweight world title shot during the aftermath of his triumph over Canelo late last year – a proposal which later fell apart due to a failed doping test by Janibek Alimkhanuly.
Continuing the praise that the Omaha-born southpaw has received since announcing his retirement last December, Benn told Daily Mail Boxing that he would favour the undefeated star to get the better of De La Hoya, if they were to meet in their primes.
Benn also went on to predict that Crawford would retain his unbeaten streak against other greats of the game, picking him to come out on top against each of Mayweather, Julio Cesar Chavez, Pernell Whitaker and Roberto Duran.
Top trainer and former world champion Robert Garcia has considered the outcome of a fantasy showdown between Terence Crawford and Manny Pacquiao.
The two generational greats reportedly came close to squaring off in 2021, back when Crawford was the WBO welterweight champion and ‘Pac Man’ held the WBA title.
Their unification match never materialised, though, as Pacquiao was scheduled to face Errol Spence Jr before ‘The Truth’ pulled out with a torn retina.
Instead, the Filipino legend ended up losing his WBA title to Yordenis Ugas at a stage when, while still serviceable, he was quite clearly past his best.
Crawford, meanwhile, was hitting top form around this time, just a few fights away from producing arguably a career-best performance against Spence.
He did, of course, manage to stop his welterweight rival in nine rounds, before moving up to 168lbs and becoming a three-division undisputed champion by dethroning Canelo Alvarez last September.
Based on those two performances, coach Garcia has told ESNEWS that he would favour ‘Bud’ to defeat even a prime version of Pacquiao.
“The Crawford that beat Spence – and the Crawford that beat Canelo – would probably beat Manny.”
While Crawford’s prime almost certainly came during his run of eight stoppages at welterweight, it is harder to pinpoint when Pacquiao ultimately reached his peak.
In terms of his most destructive performance at world level, however, many will point towards his second-round finish over Ricky Hatton in 2009.
While facing the ‘Hitman’ at 140lbs, Pacquiao would cement himself as a formidable welterweight champion soon after, dethroning Miguel Cotto with a 12th-round stoppage for the WBO title.
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