Katie Taylor faces Chantelle Cameron again with only a win in mind

It’s been more than seven years since Katie Taylor last had to react to a loss, but after her loss to Chantelle Cameron in May, she embraced the emotion. For long-time champions who lose later in their careers, some may view a loss as a sign that a career is coming to an end – but Taylor sees things differently.

Retirement is not on the mind of Taylor (22-1, 6 KOs), 37, who insists she will be better against Cameron (18-0, 8 KOs) in their rematch on Saturday . Cameron was awarded the victory by majority decision with two of the judges scoring 96-94 and the third judge scoring a draw.

“I don’t think this fight will be my last fight, I don’t think of any other outcome than a victory,” Taylor told ESPN. “I feel very fresh and good in the gym, I feel I still have a lot of fight left in me. I will retire when I feel the time is right. I have no plans to hang up my gloves for now. Retirement It never occurred to me after the last fight, it’s never good for a fighter to think about retirement before fighting.

Taylor, one of the biggest stars in women’s boxing, says there were reasons for not being at her best earlier this year, just like in 2016 when she was knocked out in the quarter-finals of the Rio de Janeiro Games. The 2012 gold medalist described 2016 as a year of “turmoil” for her boxing career and her family. Before the 2016 Olympics, Taylor’s parents separated and Katie decided to no longer have her father as her boxing coach.

After the disappointment and shock of his loss at the Olympics, Taylor turned professional and progressed quickly. A year later, she won a world title and became the undisputed lightweight world champion, as well as a world title at junior welterweight, with big victories over Jessica McCaskill, Natasha Jonas, Delfine Persoon (twice ) and Amanda Serrano. The race continued until the beginning of this year.

Cameron, 32, from Northampton who trains in Manchester, beat Taylor in Taylor’s first professional performance on home soil in Ireland. Taylor, who is originally from Bray, Ireland but trains and lives in Connecticut, is still the undisputed lightweight world champion as Cameron’s junior welterweight belts were on the line when they met. Taylor will once again challenge the Englishwoman for her four belts, back indoors at the 3Arena in Dublin.

“I think failure makes you analyze things a little more and that was the case for this fight,” Taylor said. “I think that’s where all the growth happens, when you suffer a loss you are forced to consider every factor and I feel like a better boxer than before now.

“Preparation is better [for the rematch] and I feel much better before this fight, I feel in great shape and I can’t wait to show the best of myself that night. I think everyone could see that I definitely wasn’t at my best in the last fight, so I’m looking forward to doing it right for the next one… This camp has been a lot different. I don’t want to dwell on that. I failed that night. I feel better mentally and physically before this one. I’m very grateful to have a second chance to make things right.”

Avenging his only professional defeat is Taylor’s only goal Saturday. Cameron, the undisputed junior welterweight world champion who has now won six world title fights in a row, was busier than Taylor in the first fight. Cameron landed more total punches (141 to 111) and more power shots (114 to 90) than Taylor, according to CompuBox.

“I’ve prepared myself for whatever comes my way, she has a high work rate and she will bring that to the table that night,” Taylor said. “It would be one of the greatest victories of my career [to beat Cameron at the weekend]. This one is special. I’m looking forward to revenge, I guess, and I love going into these fights where people doubt me…I’m not saying there’s any added pressure this time because every fight has pressure, but it’s probably my most important fight yet in my career. It’s a fight that must be won.”