‘Undisputed’: Legend Katie Taylor bows out with her fairytale win on epic night in Dublin

Once Upon A Time met its happily ever after as Katie Taylor secured her fairytale win at Croke Park.

Taylor took a unanimous decision win over French challenger Flora Pili on an epic night in Dublin.

Irish icon Taylor will now retire as three-time undisputed world champion, her place in the boxing annals and a future place in the Hall of Fame long since secured.

The sound of the clapper from the timekeeper at ringside was the signal for Taylor to go to the depths. One last time. A final flurry.

Two judges scored it a complete shutout, 100-90, and the other was 98-91, all in favour of Taylor, who bows out after an unforgettable night.

“Let me look around for a second,” she gasped in the ring afterwards.

The biggest attendance in Irish boxing history, a capacity audience of 83,000, bore witness as Taylor grabbed her moment as the headline act on a Matchroom Boxing card billed as Once Upon A Time.

After defeating Amadna Serrano for the third time last July at Madison Square Garden, Taylor seemed set to ride off into the sunset.

Croke Park was the condition for Taylor’s continuation. Manager Brian Peters and promoter Eddie Hearn enlisted Peter Aiken of Aiken Promotions and soon the dream became a reality.  

The Bray woman became the first boxer since Muhammad Ali defeated Al ‘Blue’ Lewis in 1972, to headline the Iconic stadium on Jones Road. For so long it felt as if her two dances with Chantelle Cameron at the 3Arena would have to suffice as homecomings. All through her rise, Taylor never accepted that the possible was impossible. 

Taylor, on the front foot, took the first round, setting a the early pace for the contest.

The Irish woman was the boss of the second verse too, landing a couple of sharp jabs on Pili, who also caught a stinging left hook. 

A couple of rapid combinations welcomed Pili to Ireland and the still-fleet-of-foot Taylor – 14 years after winning Olympic lightweight gold in London in 2012 – stayed the aggressor into the third, but Pili showed signs that she wasn’t going to go quietly into the night. 7

Pili, a 29-year-old from Saint-Avold in France, won the IBO world super lightweight title when beating Jelena Janicijevic in December. 

She arrived in Dublin as the mandatory challenger for Taylor’s IBF title as well as the top-ranked possibility for the vacant WBC belt. 

Pili may as well have arrived in Ireland and tried to cancel St Patrick’s Day.

Her 12-0 record pointed to an opponent who was, at least, potentially dangerous were a below-par Taylor to have emerged.

It wasn’t her first rodeo in Dublin – nine years ago she lost to Kellie Harrington at the National Stadium in an international round-robin and was beaten twice by Irma Testa from Italy during the same visit.

Midway through a relatively even fourth, Taylor arrowed another menacing combination before having to dodge a return-serve attempt from Pili in the fifth.

The seventh was Pili’s best so far, enough to snatch it on the cards, but Taylor edged the eighth.

As they headed for the final two minutes – the last 120 seconds of her storied career – Taylor was well up and just needed to avoid one of those showreel shots to take her crown to retirement.

She did just that, finishing with a flourish to sign off in style.

This famous old stadium was shaken to its core in July when Mayo buried their famous curse to win their first All-Ireland since 1951. Granuaile herself – Grace O’Malley, the 16th-century Irish chieftain referenced in The Green and Red of Mayo – was surely overlooking here at another Irish warrior without a hint of retreat.

Tears and tricolours were as plentiful as each other as the moment arrived at the beckon of legendary ring announcer David Diamante, who could barely be heard above the Olé Olés.

Onto the stage came our most noble of sweet scientists, Taylor entering for her 21st world title fight. As only Taylor could, she came not by the traditional, expected route from the main tunnel at the Hogan Stand, instead arriving for a longer ring walk from the corner of the Hogan and Davin Stands, keeping Pilli waiting for six minutes before she ducked through the ropes. The old place actually shuddered as Taylor emerged, flanked by Peters, Hearn – draped in the Irish flag – and trainer Ross Enamit.

A little over an hour later, they were coming back through the ropes again.

Off she goes into the sunset: we won’t ever see her likes again 

UNDERCARD

On the undercard, the chief support bout was ruled a no contest after Thomas Carty went through the ropes, off the apron and onto the floor in the opening round of his heavyweight contest with Dave Allen.

Paddy Donovan dominated Tyrone McKenna before earning a win via a fifth round stoppage on the Once Upon A Time card at Croke Park.

In the battle of the southpaws, it was Limerick welter ‘The Real Deal’ who took victory when Paul McCullagh, the referee, called a half two minutes and 33 seconds into the fifth round on the advice of the ringside medic.

Emmet Brennan’s comeback following a long hiatus ended in defeat to Taylor Bevan.

Brennan was on the canvas five times as Bevan took a sixth round stoppage to maintain his flawless record.

The super-middleweight clash was scheduled for 10 rounds, but lasted until 36 seconds of the sixth round when the relentless, hungry Bevan brought about the ending.

Joe McGrail took out Matthew Boreland with a vicious left hook to the body in the fifth round of their scheduled 10-rounder. Boreland was battling gamely, but McGrail landed the decisive blow in a close clinch, sending the Coleraine man wincing to the canvas.

It’s a first defeat for the Ryan Burnett-trained Boreland in the pro ranks, ‘Barn Barn’ counted out by ref’ Padraig O’Reachtagain, but McGrail improves to 14-0.

‘Meatball’ Molly McCann – a distant cousin of Katie Taylor – moved to 5-0 as a pro with a points win over Sylwia Doligala after eight rounds.

Adam Olaniyan wasted little-to-no time in extending his perfect KO record. The heavy-handed Tallaght man stepped Matej Hudak in the opening round of Croke Park’s first heavyweight bout since Muhammad Ali beat Al ‘Blue’ Lewis in 1972, while young Dub Bobbi Flood outpointed Jack Swallow after four rounds. 

Paul Ryan defeated Paddy Gallagher in the opener, a clarification needed there from the ring announcer after an error in initially announcing Gallagher as the winner.