Katie Taylor ready for unification clash on AJ fight card
Whilst the male heavyweight division stumbles in its attempts to put on clashes between titleholders and top contenders, the female lightweight division is set for a historic showdown to determine the undisputed champion of the world.
Katie Taylor is prepared to face the veteran Delfine Persoon in a lightweight unification fight at New York's Madison Square Gardens this Saturday.
'The Bray Bomber' has described her chance to fight for the undisputed title as "The Biggest Fight of my career."
"To become the undisputed champion is the pinnacle of boxing," she told Sky Sports.
Katie Taylor (13-0) is unbeaten as a professional, and holds the IBF, WBA and WBO titles at lightweight.
The female world champion had a decorated amateur career, winning Olympic gold at London 2012 and five consecutive gold medals at the Women's World Championships. Taylor also won six gold medals at the European Championships.
In her last outing, Taylor stopped Brazilian titlist Rose Volante in the ninth round via TKO, claiming the WBO belt to add to her ever-growing collection.
Despite the impressive start to her professional career, the Irish boxer is not taking her next opponent lightly.
"I am expecting my toughest fight to date but I am ready for this challenge."
Persoon is unbeaten in nearly nine years and has held the WBC belt since 2014. The Belgian fighter has a professional record of 43-1, with her sole loss coming via knockout.
Although Taylor hasn't fought as many times as a pro as her opponent, the 32-year-old amassed valuable fighting experience during her long amateur career.
The bout is scheduled for ten rounds and the fight is scheduled just before the main event. Britain's unified heavyweight world champion Anthony Joshua faces the gritty challenger Andy Ruiz Jr in his American debut at MSG.
Undoubtedly this is another huge moment for women's boxing after Clarissa Shields' victory over Christina Hammer in a middleweight unification fight earlier this year.