Katie Taylor Defeats Amanda Serrano To Retain Her Undisputed World Super-Lightweight Titles

Katie Taylor Defeats Amanda Serrano To Retain Her Undisputed World Super-Lightweight Titles

There was no revenge for Amanda Serrano at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington as Katie Taylor retained her undisputed world super-lightweight titles on a wafer-thin unanimous points decision. All three judges edged it to Taylor by an agreed 95-94.

The fight didn’t quite match their incredibly pulsating first fight in 2022, but Taylor and Serrano nevertheless yet again served up another classic encounter.

Serrano got off to a dream start hurting Taylor at the end of the first round. A left hand straight down the middle badly rocked the reigning champion, and Taylor was arguably saved by the bell. Another thirty seconds, and the fight could have been over right there and then.

But Taylor always finds a way to win. And she did so again. The momentum of the fight seemed to change in the 4th round. Not for the first time, the head of Katie Taylor came into play. Serrano was badly cut over her right eye. The referee deemed it an accidental headbutt. But the Puerto Rican lost her way somewhat after her good start.

The fight exploded into life in the 7th, as both fighters stood toe-to-toe. That remained the pattern for the rest of the fight. Taylor was guilty of repeated headbutts, and the referee finally lost patience in the 8th round. He took away a point, and that looked pivotal.

But Taylor yet again found what she needed as the two traded blows non-stop for the rest of the fight. It looked desperately close at the finish. But Taylor, as she did two years ago, finished the stronger down the stretch to edge the fight after her troublesome start.

Serrano can consider herself a little unfortunate not to have her hand raised in the rematch. But the fight seemed to drift away from her a little, even though the punchstats indicated that she should have been the one celebrating a famous victory. I thought Serrano lost her composure when the blood started to flow. She fought the final half of the fight largely at a range that suited her opponent. I think Serrano might be kicking herself at how she let the fight unfold. Although Taylor played a part in that also.

The fight was close. It wasn’t controversial. There is a difference. It could have legitimately gone either way. There was talk of a third fight, but a trilogy with Chantelle Cameron is far more appealing to this observer.

Katie Taylor survived another real scare, and the question must be, how much longer can she stay at the top? At 38, her time is extremely limited in the sport. But somehow, she keeps on winning. When the time does come for her to walk away, her side of the sport will be a far lesser place.

Taylor improves her record to 24-1. Serrano drops to 47-3-1.