Eddie Hearn on main difficulty in bringing Katie Taylor’s next fight to Croker

Rory Fleming

Hearn wants to see Taylor’s next bout take place in front of “40 or 50 thousand people”.

Katie Taylor will make her maiden professional boxing appearance on Irish soil in Dublin’s 3 Arena on Saturday night, taking on the also undefeated world champion Chantelle Cameron.

Prior to the announcement of this fight, there had been much speculation that the Bray native’s homecoming bout would take place in the iconic surroundings of Croke Park, although those plans ultimately fell through.

“It was very expensive, three times the cost of doing it at Wembley Stadium”.

Eddie Hearn on bringing Katie Taylor’s next fight to Croke Park. 🏟️ 🥊 pic.twitter.com/xJTSIvl5bI

— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) May 18, 2023

With 8,000 people set to cram into the 3 Arena for the fight, Taylor’s promoter Eddie Hearn discussed the possibility of trying again to bring the former Olympian to GAA headquarters.

Accepting that affordable tickets have been hard to come by given the size of Saturday’s venue, Hearn said;

“Although the tickets are very expensive this weekend because we only got 8,000 of them, we can get 40 or 50 thousand at Croke Park, and we’ll see what happens on Saturday night”.

Discussing why a deal with the GAA venue could not be reached for this weekend’s fight, Hearn bemoaned the costs associated with staging events at Croker.

“It was very expensive. Yeah, three times the cost of doing it at Wembley Stadium. But you know, as I said, there’s rugby on this weekend, and maybe next time we can have a better, clearer weekend (referencing this weekends European rugby finals) for everybody to bring additional tourism to Ireland”.

Taylor will move up a weight class to take on Britain’s undefeated Chantelle Cameron. (Credit: Getty Images)

Adding that it’s “unbelievable” to be back in Dublin and to witness the love and support the Irish public have for Taylor, Hearn reflected;

“We should really have been here for a debut for a first world title fight. It’s taken a long time, and we’re going to make the most of it with a great event and a great fight”.

Hearn, who was unable to hide his admiration for the undefeated Taylor, also offered a glowing appraisal of the 36-year-old.

“It’s amazing everything she’s achieved, and she’s one of the purest souls and she’s one of the greatest athletes of all time and she’s moving up a weight class!”

*Feature image courtesy of Matchroom Boxing

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