Eddie Hearn shares ‘terrifying’ Katie Taylor admission with Roy Keane

‘Terrifying’ is a word much more associated with Roy Keane than Katie Taylor.

However, the Matchroom Chairman told her fellow Irish sporting Icon no one ‘scares’ him more than the undisputed lightweight champion of the world.

Speaking to ‘Stick To Football’ featuring Gary Neville, Jamie Carragher, Jill Scott, Ian Wright and Taylor’s sporting hero Roy Keane, Hearn saluted the Bray game changer for kicking down barriers throughout her remarkable career and shared stories of her pro innings to date.

The Essex fight maker, who has promoted the Olympic gold medal winner since 2016 and will put on her rematch with Chantelle Cameron at the 3Arena on November 25, also revealed the level of fear he has for the trailblazer.

“Katie is one of the most fierce people inside and outside of the ring. She scares the life out of me,” said Hearn.

“She is the most terrifying person I’ve ever met in my life. You know why? She is so pleasant and then all of a sudden,” he adds before giving an example.

“She fought in Boston and she basically sold the whole place out. She was fighting three from the end and when she walked out the place was absolutely amazing. After she fought, the crowd all left.

“The next morning, we were at breakfast, she came over and said, “can I talk to you?”. I said, of course, no problem, sit down.

“She said, ‘can I ask you how much Tevin Farmer got paid last night?’. He was on after her. It was about three times what she got.

“So she said, ‘do you think that’s fair?’. And I said ‘no I don’t’.

“She said; ‘I think I sold all the tickets and everyone tuned in to watch me. So how can I be getting so much less than this guy’.

Hearn also points out Taylor hasn’t just changed how women’s boxing is viewed as a sport, she has changed it financially.

“Now she is getting well paid and that shows how far women’s boxing has come. When she was on the rise, the female talent was not getting rewarded in anywhere near the same way.

“She has turned down millions in endorsements, she don’t want to do any interviews, but seeing what she has done has given us a massive drive for women’s boxing, which is now commercially viable in its own right.”

It has been one of boxing’s most influential careers

“I saw her winning gold at the Olympics in London and the crowd was amazing, so out of respect, I said I’d have a meeting with her, but I didn’t see a future for women’s boxing.

“She came into my office and I was mesmerised. I’ve never met a more determined person.

“I said tell me the three most important things in her life and she said; boxing, God and her family. We started and it went from there.