It’s the biggest fight of her life
Katie promoter Hearn confident she’ll be new world champ
Eddie Hearn PRO boxer Katie Taylor will face the “biggest moment of her career so far” when she fights to become world champion on Saturday night.
The 31-year-old will take on unbeaten Argentine Anahi Sanchez for the WBA lightweight title on the undercard of Anthony Joshua’s heavyweight fight against Carlos Takam in Cardiff.
Her promoter Eddie Hearn expects the fighter, from Bray, Co Wicklow, to become world champion this weekend.
He said: “It’s crunch time really isn’t it? She’s had a wonderful start to her career obviously – debuting at the end of November last year – and now 11 months on, thrown in the deep end in a real fight for the world title against the two weight world champion Anahi Sanchez.
“I think the team are a little bit on edge I think arriving in Cardiff – but you know Katie’s been under pressure before and she’s come through the other side.
“I expect her to become world champion on Saturday.”
And Hearn insisted the world title bout is even more important than her Olympic gold medal fight at London 2012.
He told RTE radio: “I think she talks about this as the biggest moment of her career so far and I think she’s someone that lives in the present.
“Olympic gold was huge for her but I think now she sees herself fully as a professional fighter.
“This is important to her and to win a world championship as a pro would be extremely important in terms of her target.
“This is a crunch fight for Katie Taylor. She is expected to win.
“I’ve spoken to Anahi Sanchez’s camp as well and they’re very confident. They think she’s very inexperienced in the pro game and they’re certainly here to win.”
Taylor’s aim is to have a first title defence in Dublin in 2018 but the promoter warned Sanchez represents a massive step up.
He added: “The jump from her previous opponent to Saturday is huge and that’s the problem. There’s not that middle ground of talent.
“She’s very nervous but she’s well prepared and ready to go.
“I said at the start when I signed Katie I don’t necessarily see it as ‘women’s boxing’, I see it as boxing and if it’s good to watch then great.
“It’s more than good to watch. Katie Taylor has lit up arenas all around England and also of course in New York as well and she’ll do so in front of 75,000 on Saturday in the Principality Stadium.”
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