KATIE Taylor has pulled off the hat-trick, outpointing Amanda Serrano once again to retain her undisputed super-lightweight crown and, more importantly, rubber stamp her success across their iconic rivalry.
Just like their previous two encounters, this one delivered a fiercely-contested 10 rounds, with one judge even arriving at a scorecard of 95-95.
The other two officials, however, scored the fight 97-93 in Taylor’s favour, cementing her victory at a bouncing Madison Square Garden, New York.
Quite surprisingly, both fighters abandoned the idea of a 21st round, choosing not to immediately restore the same pulsating tempo of their rematch but instead open proceedings with a cagey two minutes.
Serrano, 47-4-1 (31 KOs), then came marching forward in the second frame, her southpaw jab sharp and active, while Taylor, 25-1 (6 KOs), utilised her lateral movement on the outside.
Again, the Puerto Rican seemed to edge the third visit with her eye-catching flurries, while Taylor restored a degree of control in the following round.
The Irish phenom’s trainer, Ross Enamait, then sent his charge the next two minutes after saying, ‘I like the pace,’ yet her output seemed a far cry from her usual, relentless standard.
This time around, it was a far more measured approach from Taylor, while Serrano did not exactly have her foot stamped on the gas, either.
Without wishing to inspire a sense of urgency, though, Serrano’s head coach, Jordan Maldonado, insisted that she was ahead after another paper-thin seventh round.
Enamait, meanwhile, admitted that it was a close fight as they headed into the final two frames, where Taylor enjoyed a strong finish behind her stiff jab.
In the end, her polished attacks and tight defence proved convincing enough to sway the judges, who collectively arrived at a majority decision in her favour.
A devastated Serrano was then left to collect her thoughts, forced to confront the reality that their score had been widened to 0-3.
“I tried something different,” the 36-year-old said in her post-fight interview. “It was all about working smarter, not harder.”
Moments later, Serrano could no longer resist an outpouring of emotion, as she thanked Most Valuable Promotions and Netflix for changing her life and, indeed, women’s boxing as a whole.
Before that, Taylor revealed that she had employed similar tactics, while also shutting down the possibility of a fourth encounter with Serrano.
“I was obviously planning to come in here and fight disciplined and smart,” she said. “Thankfully, I was able to execute the game plan very well.
“I just don’t want to fight Amanda Serrano again – she punches too hard.”
