By Oisin Doherty
Copyright irishmirror
Katie Taylor has broken her silence for the first time since relinquishing her WBC world super-lightweight title, stating that she is ‘enjoying a short break’ and is ‘ready for the next challenge.’
Taylor, who has held the super-lightweight, title for two years since her victory over Chantelle Cameron, was stripped of the belt on Thursday, with the WBC naming her their emeritus champion, meaning champion in recess.
39-year-old Taylor had until Thursday to open negotiations for a fight with mandatory challenger Cameron, the only boxer to have beaten Taylor as a professional.
Taylor had initially been required to negotiate with Cameron in August before receiving a three-week extension until the 18th of September.
The Irishwoman missed both dates and as a result, the WBC will now order Sandy Ryan, whose fights Taylor has attended, to face Cameron for the WBC super-lightweight world title.
In her first comments announcing a break from boxing to ‘attend to personal matters,’ Taylor thanked the WBC for naming her champion in recess, and while she didn’t clarify what the future holds, she did say that she was ‘always ready for the next challenge.’
“Very grateful to @wbcmoro and @wbcboxing for their decision to appoint me as WBC Emeritus Champion and proud to have been a WBC World Champion for over 6 years now,” wrote Taylor on Instagram.
“Enjoying a short break and some family time but always ready for the next challenge!”
A champion in recess is a term given to a title holder who cannot defend the belt for a certain reason.
In most cases, it is because of injury. But in Taylor’s case, the decision of the WBC to name her the Emeritus champion can be seen as a mark of respect for the legendary boxer who has defended WBC world title belts for six years.
The Champion in Recess designation allows the title to be vacated so other fighters can compete for it and keep the division active, while granting the boxer a special status and the possibility of returning to fight for the belt in the future.
Taylor joins fellow boxing greats Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao in receiving the honour from the WBC. It comes two months after she defeated Amanda Serrano for a third time.
The Bray Bomber has suggested that a fight at Croke Park might be the only thing that could get her back in the ring. However, it could be next August at the earliest before such an event could take place.
