Carl Frampton knows what it’s all about.
Saturday night and Katie Taylor bids to become the undisputed lightweight champion of the world. Delfine Persoon, the 43-1 Belgian stands in the Bray woman’s way as the two spearheads of the women’s lightweight division meet in Madison Square Garden.
Persoon is Taylor’s closest rival in the division, yet Taylor is still the 1/16 favourite with the bookies to make history.
That speaks volumes about her ability, and her dominance in her field.
Another sure sign of Taylor’s prowess was demonstrated recently by Carl Frampton on JOE’s Total Knockout podcast with 32Red.
The Jackal recalled the time spent sparring with Taylor, when her dad Pete would arrange it so Katie was training with some of the best amateurs in the men’s game.
He says that Taylor is technically a better boxer than he was, and that he’d have to call his sheer strength into play to contain her.
“Katie was super fast, and it felt like when I was sparring her she was probably a better boxer than me, if I’m being honest. She is so fast, so, so fast it’s really difficult…
‘”She battered me a couple of times, I tried my best,” he continued.
Carl Frampton on sparring Katie Taylor.
"She was probably a better boxer than me, she battered me a couple of times"
This Saturday, she bids to become the undisputed lightweight champion of the world. @RealCFrampton knows what it's all about 👇 pic.twitter.com/GprDnnGCaT
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) May 29, 2019
That’s the type of athlete we’re dealing with.
Taylor’s fight will take place prior to Anthony Joshua’s heavyweight title bout against Andy Ruiz Junior. The 32-year-old has already won the WBO, WBA and IBF crowns so far and it’s Persoon’s the WBC crown that will grant her all-conquering domination of the 60kg division.
“I cannot wait to write my name in the history books. Ever since I did turn pro, I wanted to become the undisputed champion, I wanted to make history in this sport and I am so close to it now,” Taylor said to Sky Sports.
