NATASHA JONAS, YOU might be next. Chantelle Cameron, it could be you. Jessica McCaskill, you might just get your wish.
New WBA World lightweight champion Katie Taylor isn’t one to scream the names of prospective opponents from the rooftops, but made no bones about her intentions to fight every one of the world’s best 135-pounders when reflecting on her world title success in Cardiff.
The 31-year-old Bray woman outclassed and out-fought a game Anahi Sanchez of Argentina in front of 50-odd-thousand people at the Principality Stadium on Saturday in a scrap which proved the night’s most entertaining.
Sanchez, who lost her title on the scales on Friday, was felled by a bullet-like left hook to the body in the second round, but somehow mustered the valour to peel herself off the canvas for eight more gruelling rounds, eventually bowing to Taylor by way of a one-sided unanimous decision.
“Yeah, it was a tough fight,” Taylor said after adding another memorable night to her monumental sporting career, “but I definitely was prepared for a tough, 10-round battle. I expected the fight to go the whole 10 rounds. I had to dig deep, it was a great learning experience for me tonight, because she was a seasoned pro and I definitely learned a lot.
“I probably got caught in a bit of a fight when I should be boxing a bit more. But I guess I have to assess it when I go home as well and have to see what I can take from it, but it was a definite big learning curve for me.”
Taylor blamed her own ‘sloppiness’ for the head-clash which resulted in her receiving a couple of stitches above her eye, and suggested she needed to fine-tune her inside game for the challenges which lie ahead.
She also admitted that when she dropped Sanchez in the second stanza, she suspected the fight might be over.
“I was hoping that was the case. I was surprised she got up after the body-shot, to be honest. She is a very tough girl. I knew she was a very durable, tough and strong opponent to fight so I was prepared for this type of battle.
“Thankfully, we got plenty of rounds under our belt sparring and that kept me going during that ten-round battle.
“I wouldn’t say she did anything surprising, I probably could have done a lot better in close. I was losing some of the battles in close. That is definitely something I will have to work on. I found it sloppy at times.
“I definitely got caught way too much tonight. She didn’t have the best power I guess – I didn’t respect her power for the whole fight and definitely got caught in a bit of a war.
Sometimes you have to try and not get drawn into it. I just need to stay a bit more composed and concentrate on boxing more, but I just got caught up in it. It definitely made for an exciting fight, probably a bit too exciting.
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The neutrals certainly enjoyed it, as did the considerable number of Irish supporters who first made themselves known with no shortage of fervour as the 2012 Olympic gold medalist was called to the ring.
One of them, Taylor’s mother, Bridget, went so far as to climb through the ropes to celebrate with her daughter after the final bell.
“Yeah, I don’t know where she came from!” Taylor laughed. “Is she even allowed in the ring?”
Bridget Taylor celebrates with daughter, Katie, as the new WBA World lightweight champion is crowned. Lawrence Lustig / INPHO
Lawrence Lustig / INPHO / INPHO
There was another surprise visitor beforehand, too: actor Colin Farrell popped into the dressing room to wish his compatriot luck, and were it not for Taylor’s disregard for pageantry, he might well have found himself in the ring some 10 rounds before Bridget Taylor.
“It was great, meeting Colin,” said the new champion – Ireland’s first at lightweight since the 1890s. “Absolute gentleman. He [nods at manager Brian Peters] wanted him to walk me into the ring but I said, ‘no, it’s okay.’
“We nearly had him!” Peters interjected. “Katie left him off the hook.”
“He just wished me luck and a bit of small talk,” Taylor continued. “Someone had told me he was going to be in the crowd, but I didn’t know he was going to be in the dressing room, so it was a nice surprise.”
Colin Farrell just interviewed live in Cardiff, overcome with Irish pride talking about Katie Taylor... now we see why! ☘️ #SanchezTaylorpic.twitter.com/xW4TzoMApB
Taylor is a world champion having spent just 11 months in the professional ranks, her beaming smile providing a marked change from the teary-eyed, gut-wrenching end to her days as an amateur.
She’s not remotely surprised by her change in fortunes, though, and that smile quickly turns to a contemplative frown when it’s suggested it might have been difficult to make such an impact on the paid ranks given the soul-sapping nature of last year, and Rio in particular.
“I don’t think I ever doubted myself. I always knew that people hadn’t seen the best of me, and I still believe that. It is definitely sweet to come out with a great victory tonight.
I guess you only appreciate the high points when you experience the low points as well. I had a tough year last year but I definitely knew I was going to come out on top and I am so grateful for the team I have around me here, and Ross [Enamait] – it is an absolute privilege to be training alongside him.
“The Olympics [2012] was great at the time, but as a professional, obviously, all I want to do is win world titles and keep boxing on big shows like this. It is an absolute dream for me. It is definitely on par with the Olympics and there are only going to be bigger nights ahead.
“I do like to stay busy and this fight will open up a lot of doors for me as well. I want to unify the division and there are some great champions out there who I would like to fight. There are great, great fighters out there and great fights to be made.”
Lawrence Lustig / INPHO
Lawrence Lustig / INPHO / INPHO
A minor cut suffered versus Sanchez, while “nothing to worry about”, puts a kibosh on plans to finish the year with a Stateside title defence – which likely would have been against Jessica McCaskill in Chicago.
Manager Peters explained that a year’s end scrap across the Atlantic was all-but cemented, but would now probably be put on the back-burner for a few months while Taylor’s eye heals. Still, the Bray woman would relish the opportunity to silence McCaskill, who along with her manager Ricardo Ramos, has been calling Taylor out since July.
“Yeah, that’s right. Why not? Why not fight her?” Taylor said.
“I’d guess I’d love to fight them all eventually between Natasha Jonas, Chantelle Cameron, Mikaela Mayer.”
Peters added with a smile: “Katie will get around to them all – have no doubt about that! Jessica McCaskill, everyone one of them will get their chance.
“The girls that hold the belts as well,” continued Taylor. “That’s obviously my main priority.”
Having fought on her third Anthony Joshua card on Saturday, too, she’s keen to maintain that link through promoter Eddie Hearn, although with a hearty laugh, she hints that down the line, she’ll be seeking headline status as opposed to supporting slots.
“Yeah, absolutely, I can’t wait for Anthony Joshua to be on my undercard!”
Peters, who revealed that Anahi Sanchez earned ‘three or four times more’ than she had ever been paid to fight previously – even allowing for the portion of her purse that she lost through her failure to make weight – was particularly keen to put his newly-crowned champion’s achievement into context.
“You can’t forget that Katie is only 11 months a pro. We were having difficulty with opponents and it was a huge step up tonight, a very experienced campaigner – nearly 90 rounds boxed. Katie has 32 rounds boxed.
But it’s good, it’s on a big show. First Irish boxer ever to win an a World amateur championship and a World professional championships – another new boundary broken there. First big [women's] world title, would you believe, to be fought in the UK – first of one of the major ones [WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO]. It was the third fight on the card, and like you say, there were the guts of 50,000 there. It was a good learning fight. Got paid a lot of money.
“We’ve got the champion. You can give more notice, more money to fight on big shows like this.”
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'I can’t wait for Anthony Joshua to be on my undercard!': Taylor has her belt, and no rival is safe
Gavan Casey reports from Cardiff.
NATASHA JONAS, YOU might be next. Chantelle Cameron, it could be you. Jessica McCaskill, you might just get your wish.
New WBA World lightweight champion Katie Taylor isn’t one to scream the names of prospective opponents from the rooftops, but made no bones about her intentions to fight every one of the world’s best 135-pounders when reflecting on her world title success in Cardiff.
The 31-year-old Bray woman outclassed and out-fought a game Anahi Sanchez of Argentina in front of 50-odd-thousand people at the Principality Stadium on Saturday in a scrap which proved the night’s most entertaining.
Sanchez, who lost her title on the scales on Friday, was felled by a bullet-like left hook to the body in the second round, but somehow mustered the valour to peel herself off the canvas for eight more gruelling rounds, eventually bowing to Taylor by way of a one-sided unanimous decision.
“Yeah, it was a tough fight,” Taylor said after adding another memorable night to her monumental sporting career, “but I definitely was prepared for a tough, 10-round battle. I expected the fight to go the whole 10 rounds. I had to dig deep, it was a great learning experience for me tonight, because she was a seasoned pro and I definitely learned a lot.
“I probably got caught in a bit of a fight when I should be boxing a bit more. But I guess I have to assess it when I go home as well and have to see what I can take from it, but it was a definite big learning curve for me.”
Taylor blamed her own ‘sloppiness’ for the head-clash which resulted in her receiving a couple of stitches above her eye, and suggested she needed to fine-tune her inside game for the challenges which lie ahead.
She also admitted that when she dropped Sanchez in the second stanza, she suspected the fight might be over.
“I was hoping that was the case. I was surprised she got up after the body-shot, to be honest. She is a very tough girl. I knew she was a very durable, tough and strong opponent to fight so I was prepared for this type of battle.
“Thankfully, we got plenty of rounds under our belt sparring and that kept me going during that ten-round battle.
“I wouldn’t say she did anything surprising, I probably could have done a lot better in close. I was losing some of the battles in close. That is definitely something I will have to work on. I found it sloppy at times.
“I definitely got caught way too much tonight. She didn’t have the best power I guess – I didn’t respect her power for the whole fight and definitely got caught in a bit of a war.
The neutrals certainly enjoyed it, as did the considerable number of Irish supporters who first made themselves known with no shortage of fervour as the 2012 Olympic gold medalist was called to the ring.
One of them, Taylor’s mother, Bridget, went so far as to climb through the ropes to celebrate with her daughter after the final bell.
“Yeah, I don’t know where she came from!” Taylor laughed. “Is she even allowed in the ring?”
There was another surprise visitor beforehand, too: actor Colin Farrell popped into the dressing room to wish his compatriot luck, and were it not for Taylor’s disregard for pageantry, he might well have found himself in the ring some 10 rounds before Bridget Taylor.
“It was great, meeting Colin,” said the new champion – Ireland’s first at lightweight since the 1890s. “Absolute gentleman. He [nods at manager Brian Peters] wanted him to walk me into the ring but I said, ‘no, it’s okay.’
“We nearly had him!” Peters interjected. “Katie left him off the hook.”
“He just wished me luck and a bit of small talk,” Taylor continued. “Someone had told me he was going to be in the crowd, but I didn’t know he was going to be in the dressing room, so it was a nice surprise.”
Taylor is a world champion having spent just 11 months in the professional ranks, her beaming smile providing a marked change from the teary-eyed, gut-wrenching end to her days as an amateur.
She’s not remotely surprised by her change in fortunes, though, and that smile quickly turns to a contemplative frown when it’s suggested it might have been difficult to make such an impact on the paid ranks given the soul-sapping nature of last year, and Rio in particular.
“I don’t think I ever doubted myself. I always knew that people hadn’t seen the best of me, and I still believe that. It is definitely sweet to come out with a great victory tonight.
“The Olympics [2012] was great at the time, but as a professional, obviously, all I want to do is win world titles and keep boxing on big shows like this. It is an absolute dream for me. It is definitely on par with the Olympics and there are only going to be bigger nights ahead.
“I do like to stay busy and this fight will open up a lot of doors for me as well. I want to unify the division and there are some great champions out there who I would like to fight. There are great, great fighters out there and great fights to be made.”
A minor cut suffered versus Sanchez, while “nothing to worry about”, puts a kibosh on plans to finish the year with a Stateside title defence – which likely would have been against Jessica McCaskill in Chicago.
Manager Peters explained that a year’s end scrap across the Atlantic was all-but cemented, but would now probably be put on the back-burner for a few months while Taylor’s eye heals. Still, the Bray woman would relish the opportunity to silence McCaskill, who along with her manager Ricardo Ramos, has been calling Taylor out since July.
“Yeah, that’s right. Why not? Why not fight her?” Taylor said.
“I’d guess I’d love to fight them all eventually between Natasha Jonas, Chantelle Cameron, Mikaela Mayer.”
Peters added with a smile: “Katie will get around to them all – have no doubt about that! Jessica McCaskill, everyone one of them will get their chance.
“The girls that hold the belts as well,” continued Taylor. “That’s obviously my main priority.”
Having fought on her third Anthony Joshua card on Saturday, too, she’s keen to maintain that link through promoter Eddie Hearn, although with a hearty laugh, she hints that down the line, she’ll be seeking headline status as opposed to supporting slots.
“Yeah, absolutely, I can’t wait for Anthony Joshua to be on my undercard!”
Peters, who revealed that Anahi Sanchez earned ‘three or four times more’ than she had ever been paid to fight previously – even allowing for the portion of her purse that she lost through her failure to make weight – was particularly keen to put his newly-crowned champion’s achievement into context.
“You can’t forget that Katie is only 11 months a pro. We were having difficulty with opponents and it was a huge step up tonight, a very experienced campaigner – nearly 90 rounds boxed. Katie has 32 rounds boxed.
“We’ve got the champion. You can give more notice, more money to fight on big shows like this.”
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Katie Taylor dominates Anahi Sanchez to win her first world title as a professional
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