History Makers – Deirdre Gogarty backs Katie Taylor

The fighter that inspired Ireland’s most inspirational sporting star is backing her to win the ‘biggest fight in female boxing history’ this Saturday night.

One of the original pioneers, Deirdre Gogarty was involved in the first classic female fight when, alongside Christy Martin, she lit up Las Vegas on the undercard of Mike Tyson versus Frank Bruno back in 1996.

Gogarty lost on points that night but opened Martin’s nose in an exciting brawl which overshadowed the main event and has since gone down in history

That fight, which inspired young wanna be female fighters around the world including Katie Taylor, is set to be replaced at the top of the iconic charts by the undisputed lightweight world champion’s defence against seven-weight world champion on the top of a Madison Square Garden hosted fight night this coming Saturday.

And this time, 26 years on, the victor of a breakthrough female fight will be Irish predicted Ireland’s first female boxing world champion.

“I just believe Katie is a more well-rounded fighter,” Gogarty told Sean McGoldrick. “She is better on her feet, and I just think that technically she has more ability. But it will be a battle.”

“Serrano is going to have to come at her very aggressively and I imagine what she will try to do is put Katie off her game. But that will play right into Katie’s hands.

“She boxes very well against aggressive opponents, I think she will win on points,”

Gogarty was Katie Taylor’s inspiration when she began her career and was pretending to be a boy to get fights.

At the age of 12, Taylor wrote a letter to the Drogheda native expressing how hard it was for her to find her way in the sport.

US-based Gogarty kept the letter, the kind of which will never have to be written again thanks to Taylor’s exploits, and the pair have met over the years.

“She had the same problems as I had when I was growing up Ireland; trying to get fights.

“I just told her to keep at it if she loved it. Eventually, her skills were going to be recognised”