Katie Taylor is set to close her professional career at Croke Park in Dublin on September 5, with her promoter Matchroom Boxing expected to confirm the bout at a press conference at the stadium on Friday. The event will be Taylor’s first fight at Ireland’s national stadium, a venue she has campaigned to headline since 2022.
Taylor, 39, will face France’s Flora Pili for the vacant WBC super lightweight title, BoxingScene reported. Taylor already holds the WBA, IBF and WBO belts at 140 pounds, so a win would return her to undisputed status at the weight and make her a three-time undisputed champion across two divisions.
The WBC title became available after Sandy Ryan stepped away from the sport to have a child. Pili, the mandatory challenger for Taylor’s IBF title, is the leading contender for the vacant belt.
Pili’s path to the headline
Pili (12-0, 2 KOs) turned professional in 2019 and won the French junior welterweight title within three years. The 28-year-old from Saint-Avold added a European title in 2023 and claimed the IBO belt in December with a 10-round majority decision over Serbia’s Jelena Janicijevic. She has not previously faced an opponent of Taylor’s standing.
Taylor (25-1, 6 KOs) won Olympic gold at London 2012 and five world amateur titles before turning professional in 2016. She became undisputed champion at lightweight and again at super lightweight, and last fought in July, when she beat Amanda Serrano for a third time in their trilogy at Madison Square Garden, broadcast on Netflix.
Croke Park’s first fight since 1972
The card will be the first boxing event at Croke Park since Muhammad Ali defeated Al “Blue” Lewis in a non-title bout in 1972. The 82,000-capacity stadium is owned by the Gaelic Athletic Association, and Eddie Hearn has cited an inability to reach terms with the GAA as the reason previous attempts to stage a Taylor fight there stalled.
Speaking to RTE earlier this year, Taylor described the venue as the final ambition of her career. “It would be the icing on the cake to end my career in Croke Park. I fought in Madison Square Garden. I fought in the Excel Arena in London. I fought all around the world. This might even top it to be honest, if I ended my career here,” she said.
Friday’s press conference is scheduled at Croke Park and will be streamed on DAZN. Ticket information and final confirmation of the opponent are expected to be released at the announcement.
