The respected Ring magazine has named Katie Taylor the best pound-for-pound professional woman's boxer in the world following her unanimous decision win over Spain's Miriam Gutierrez at the Wembley Arena last weekend.
Taylor takes over from American light-heavyweight Clarissa Shields, who was previously coached on the US Olympic team by former Ireland head coach Billy Walsh. Like Taylor, Shields is a former Olympic gold medallist, and was named as number one in the inaugural list which came out in August. Shields won three world titles in her first 10 fights.
Taylor's win came after two brutal outings with Belgium's Delphine Persoon, the first a disputed win for the Irish boxer and the second a much more clearcut decision. Gutierrez was a mandatory challenger but was not close to the level of the undisputed lightweight champion from Bray.
Taylor was named at number two when the rankings were first applied during the summer but she is now unbeaten after 17 outings since she turning professional after a disappointing Rio Olympics in 2016.
“It’s great to be considered the pound-for-pound number one,” said Taylor. “It’s a very satisfying way to end the year.”
The 34-year-old has a number of options ahead of her including Amanda Serrano and the Brazilian MMA champion Cris Cyborg, although she has stated she will only take fights in a boxing ring.
