Home Boxing News Katie Taylor questions three-minute rounds as she prepares for Chantelle Cameron rematch

Katie Taylor questions three-minute rounds as she prepares for Chantelle Cameron rematch

Katie Taylor and Chantelle Cameron. Photo credit: Damien Eagers/PA Wire

Undisputed lightweight champion Katie Taylor 22-1 (6) is unsure if women’s boxing can sustain three-minute rounds.

The 37-year-old Irish superstar made the comments as she prepares for her rematch against undisputed junior welterweight champion Chantelle ‘Il Capo’ Cameron 18-0 (8), who defeated her by majority decision in May.

The duration of a round in women’s boxing is currently two-minutes with championship fights contested over 10 rounds. By contrasts, it is standard for men’s boxing to have three-minute rounds and championship bouts to take place over 12 rounds.

Undisputed featherweight champion Amanda ‘The Real Deal’ Serrano 46-2-1 (30) has led the push for the length and number of rounds for female fights to be on par with their male counterparts.

The 35-year-old Puerto Rican southpaw successfully defended her WBA, WBO, IBF and Ring Magazine championships against Danila Ramos 12-3 (1) by shutout in Orlando, Florida in October over 12 three-minute rounds. Of the four major sanctioning bodies, only the WBC refused to sanction the bout.

Britain’s Cameron, 32, is a supporter of Serrano’s stance.

But Taylor has admitted reservations about the change, saying she doubts longer bouts will result in more knockouts, one of the main selling points to three-minute rounds.

“I haven’t really got any preference either way,” Taylor said to the Associated Press. “The two-minute rounds are a real fast pace. They say the three-minute rounds will cause more knockouts, but I don’t think that’s true.

“I don’t know if women’s boxing has the strength and depth to have three-minute rounds really. For me, I really don’t care whether it’s a two or three-minute round. I spar three-minute rounds all the time. There’s pros and cons to both really.”

Taylor and Serrano have history. The pair clashed for the former’s WBC, WBA, WBO and IBF titles at New York’s famed Madison Square Garden in May 2022. It was the first time a women’s boxing match had headlined at the vaunted arena. Taylor won by split decision.

Taylor was expected to face Serrano in a rematch earlier this year before the Puerto Rican was forced to withdraw due to injury. In stepped WBC, WBA, WBO, IBF and Ring Magazine 140-pound champion Cameron, who edged the smaller Taylor by scores of 96-94, 96-94 and 95-95 at the 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland six months ago.

The rematch will take place at the same venue on Saturday night.

“Mentally and physically I feel a lot better going into this one,” said Taylor, who suffered her first loss since the amateurs when she was eliminated in the quarterfinals of the Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games in 2016.

“I just had a bit of a flat night, just a flat performance. I certainly wasn’t myself on the night, and I think everybody who watched the fight could see that.”

Cameron threw nearly twice as many punches as Taylor in the first fight.