Katie Taylor retired from boxing on a comfortable victory on Saturday, as she eased past Flora Pili while realising her dream of fighting at Croke Park.
In front of a sold-out crowd of more than 80,000 in Dublin, the Irish icon secured scores of 100-90, 100-90 and 98-91, handing Pili her first professional defeat.
With that, Taylor regained the undisputed super-lightweight titles, making her a three-time undisputed queen – across two weights. She also stamped her mark as surely the greatest female boxer of all time, and an all-time great full stop.
open image in galleryAt 40 years old, and having already declared that this would be her final fight, Taylor still looked light on her feet and fast with her offence.
Barring a brief rally from Pili, 29, in the later rounds, Taylor always looked comfortable, as she picked up the vacant WBC super-lightweight belt, adding it to her IBF, WBA and WBO titles. She also took the IBO strap from her French opponent.
It was a fitting ending for Taylor, who had to pretend to be a boy when she first boxed, before she went on to play a pivotal role in the introduction of women’s boxing at the Olympics – where she eventually won gold.
Taylor then won the undisputed lightweight titles as a professional, before adding the super-lightweight belts by avenging the sole loss of her career: a points defeat by Chantelle Cameron.
After achieving undisputed status at super-lightweight again on Saturday, Taylor addressed the crowd at Croke Park, where she had always wanted to fight.
“Croke Park, we did it; we brought boxing back to Croke Park,” she said, having become the first fighter to headline at the iconic stadium since Muhammad Ali in 1972.
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open image in gallery“Every one of you here, I had you with me before London 2012. You were with me through the heartbreak of Rio [2016], when I turned pro. You travelled the world to watch me – Manchester, Boston, Brooklyn, Manhattan. Now you are here, this is an amazing stadium.
“I don’t know any other country that could sell out 80,000 tickets for a female athlete. I’m convinced that Ireland’s the only country. Let me just look around for a second.”
Taylor proceeded to thank her family and team, while the Dublin crowd – which had been raucous all night – stayed to watch her leave her gloves in the ring.