Eddie Hearn dangles Croke Park carrot in front of Katie Taylor
Eddie Hearn has dangled the Croke Park carrot in front of Katie Taylor.
Taylor has the chance to avenge her sole pro career defeat and become a two-weight undisputed world champion when she rematches Chantelle Cameron in the 3Arena on Saturday.
As if that wasn’t motivation, Matchroom boss Hearn has suggested a historic Croke Park fight is also at stake.
The Essex fight maker claims Saturday could prove the most important chapter in the storied career of the all-time great.
Hearn told Mail Sport: “This is the most important moment in Katie’s professional career by a long way.”
Such are Taylor’s achievements that her legacy as one of the greatest boxers of all time is cemented but there is still a lot on the line for the Wicklow wonder at the Dublin Docklands venue on Saturday, including the chance to become the only person to top a Croke Park fight night other than Muhammad Ali.
The promoter added: “Victory over Cameron would set Croke Park up nicely for next year, next summer.
“It could be a trilogy, it could be Serrano. There are a couple of things, the Irish love their own and they also love a comeback story.
“To avenge the defeat going in as the underdog would give Katie her greatest moment yet.”
The Essex fight maker had initially planned to bring Taylor home in a Stadium fight and had hopes of promoting Taylor-Amanda Serrano II at GAA Headquarters in the Summer.
A disagreement over running costs meant Croker was put on ice and the Irish Icon instead came home in a 3Arena-hosted clash with undisputed light welterweight champion Cameron.
Speaking this Spring he explained: “Also, when you are going to negotiate with someone and the cost is three times more than Wembley Stadium… To be honest with you, I think it takes the absolute p*ss. For a stadium… We have done national stadiums, we have done 90,000, 80,000. Numbers are numbers and for three times the cost of running a show there it just left a little bit of bad taste but that is our problem, not Katie’s problems. “
The Matchroom boss won’t bite his nose off to spite his face and says he will consider revisiting Croke Park again in the future.
“She wanted to fight at Croke Park and we will work to make that happen but what I am not prepared to do is be involved in a fight of that magnitude, with a huge amount of risk and work, for nothing for our family business.”
This weekend’s fight night tops a card that includes Gary Cully’s bid to get back to winning ways, a heavyweight dust-up for Thomas Carty, Paddy Donovan versus English champion Danny Ball and two mouthwatering clashes between Emmet Brennan and Jamie Morrissey as well as John Cooney versus Liam Gaynor.
