Katie Taylor retained her lightweight belts and continues her journey as an undisputed and undefeated professional boxing champion with a victory over mandatory challenger Jennifer Han in Leeds on Saturday night.
The Irish boxer successfully defended her lightweight crown, winning all ten rounds on all judges scorecards (100-89 x3) in the co-main event of Lara v Warrington 2.
The fight was not the most entertaining but the result improves the resumé of the 35-year-old Taylor, who was fighting in the birthplace of her father.
Taylor started off on the front foot acting as the aggressor from the opening bell, using her jab well and reading Han’s moves.
Han began finding success with her punches in the second round and the back-and-forth theme continued over the next few rounds.
The former IBF Featherweight champion did not look rusty after 19 months without a fight but Taylor was one step ahead for much of the fight.
Both fighters traded periods of dominance in each round from 2-5 but the champion took all rounds on the scorecards – Han was at her most aggressive in these rounds and spent extended periods on the front foot.
Han’s defence was strong initially but the American started to fight looser and Taylor punished her for it and imposed her dominance with confidence from round five onwards.
As Taylor started to dominate proceedings, her 38-year-old opponent began to tire, in contrast to Taylor, who looked comfortable throughout.
The fight regressed into a one-sided climax as the final five rounds grew more one-sided with each bell.
Taylor searched for the stoppage but could not get it as her Texan opponent survived the ten rounds to take the loss on the scorecards.
In the main event, Josh Warrington’s fight against Mauricio Lara was declared a technical draw after two rounds.
An accidental headbutt from the Brit opened a cut above Lara’s eye and the ringside doctor deemed the Mexican unfit to continue.
