NEW YORK — Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano put on an instant classic Saturday night inside Madison Square Garden. Taylor walked away with a split-decision win to retain her lightweight titles. Fans who came to MSG, watched at home and followed on Twitter wanted more.
Whether it was the two-minute rounds or that the contest was closer than it seemed, there is a desire for the two to duke it out once again.
Perhaps these two are destined to do this forever. Or at least two more times.
Earlier in the week, Matchroom Boxing’s Eddie Hearn was asked about a possible rematch. He was already imagining a homecoming fight for Taylor.
“I just think it would be very disappointing if (Taylor) never got the chance to go to Ireland and let her have that moment,” Hearn said, via RTE. “But if she beats Serrano, maybe we could do the repeat there.”
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At the postfight press conference, Serrano expressed interest in another bout. She has to take care of a few things first, however.
“I’m going to let the team do that. I’m still the champion at featherweight. We’ll see, we’ll see,” she said.
Most Valuable Promotions’ Jake Paul, who played a big part in getting Saturday’s fight finalized, was very interested in a second fight — if Serrano was game, of course.
“That’s up to Amanda,” Paul said. “Everyone wants to see the rematch . . . as a team, it makes sense to go to Ireland.”
It seems fitting that fans would want this fight again. After all, 19,187 of them came to watch these two women compete against each other. Taylor herself said a rematch would be “absolutely phenomenal.” She wants to look into Croke Park in Dublin as a potential spot. It can hold up to 82,000 people.
There were also talk during fight week of a trilogy bout if it made sense. If one were to take place, it would most likely be in Las Vegas, Puerto Rico or overseas. Hearn said that Madison Square Garden has already talked to him about having a rematch in the building.
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The idea of a rematch and a trilogy fight is extremely enticing. Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder competed in a trilogy to remember recently. The first bout was a draw, the second saw Fury dominate Wilder, and the third was close at the beginning but ended with Wilder’s face hitting the canvas. The first fight had more than 745,000 pay-per-view buys in the U.S. and U.K. The rematch had more than 1.2 million in the U.S. The trilogy fight had more than 900,000.
While it may be years too late, Canelo Alvarez and Gennadiy Golovkin are close to competing in a trilogy fight before the end of this year. The first Canelo-GGG fight had more than 1.3 million PPV buys while the rematch had more than 1.1 million.
Trilogies bring out the best in fighters. Arturo Gatti vs Micky Ward, Riddick Bowe vs. Evander Holyfield and Muhammad Ali vs. Joe Frazier come to mind. The second bout between Taylor and Serrano would have to be as close as the first for a trilogy fight to happen.
Taylor and Serrano are known for multiple bouts against opponents. Taylor took on Delfine Persoon twice, and both were hard-fought affairs. Serrano fought Ela Nunez three times, each at different stages in their careers. She also fought Fatuma Zarika twice.
Each fight brought out the best in Taylor and Serrano. The first fight between the two of them two was special. A second fight may end up exceeding the first.
Would you like to see a rematch between Taylor and Serrano? Will this end up being a trilogy?