Katie Taylor retired from professional boxing after beating Flora Pili by unanimous decision at Croke Park in Dublin, becoming a three-time undisputed world champion in her final fight.
Taylor, aged 40, also ended her career as a two-weight undisputed champion after a commanding victory over Pili, a 29-year-old French opponent who arrived unbeaten with a 12-0 record. The judges scored the contest 100-90, 100-90 and 98-91.
Approximately 80,000 people attended the sold-out event. It was the first boxing headliner at Croke Park since Muhammad Ali fought Al 'Blue' Lewis in 1972, giving Taylor a stage to finish a career that began approximately three miles from the stadium.
“It was everything I expected and more,” Taylor said at her final post-fight news conference. She called the victory the “highlight of my career” and reflected on a “dream” career.
During the post-fight process, Taylor also introduced her husband, Sean, publicly for the first time.
Taylor’s first official bout took place 25 years earlier, when she was a 15-year-old taking part in a sanctioned women’s bout in Ireland.
That fight in 2001 marked the beginning of a career that helped carry women’s boxing to Croke Park. Taylor, who was born in 1986 and is from Bray, had grown up in a boxing family. Her father, Peter, was a former Irish champion boxer. Her mother, Bridget, was one of Ireland’s first female officials. Taylor also had older brothers, Lee and Peter.
Her amateur career included gold at the 2012 Olympics. She turned professional in 2016 and went on to build a record whose only defeat came against Cameron.
The final result added another distinction to that record. Taylor had already become an undisputed champion, and her win over Pili made her a three-time undisputed world champion across two weights. The achievement capped a professional farewell at a venue that had not hosted a boxing headliner for more than 50 years.
For Taylor, the night brought together the central threads of a career stretching from an early sanctioned fight in Ireland to an undisputed world-title victory before a packed Croke Park. Her retirement leaves unanswered whether she will remain involved in boxing outside competition.
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