Matchroom Boxing have confirmed that Katie Taylor will not fight Amanda Serrano in Dublin in May due to an injury suffered by the Puerto Rican.
Taylor defeated Serrano in an all-time classic at Madison Square Garden last April, with a rematch between the pair called for in the immediate aftermath of the New York bout.
An instant rematch fell through over the failure to secure Croke Park last September, with Taylor instead fighting Argentina's Karen Elizabeth Carabajal in London a month later, while Serrano opted to become the undisputed featherweight champion by defeating Sarah Mahfoud and Erika Cruz Hernandez.
READ MORE: Katie Taylor v Amanda Serrano 'a major doubt' to go ahead on May 20
An event at Croke Park this spring also fell through over the cost of hiring Croke Park, with Matchroom chairman and Taylor's promoter Eddie Hearn claiming it cost three times more to rent GAA Headquarters than it did to hire Wembley, although the Londoner is hoping to stage an event at the venue this September.
The 3Arena was set to stage the rematch on May 20, but it has now been confirmed that it won't in the latest in a long list of issues surrounding Taylor's homecoming fight.
Serrano is understood to have suffered the injury in training, forcing her to pull out of the scheduled bout with the undisputed lightweight champion over fears that it will not heal in time.
In a statement released on Tuesday afternoon, Matchroom said: "Due to an injury sustained by Amanda Serrano, Matchroom Boxing and Most Valuable Promotions regret to announce that the Taylor-Serrano II bout on May 20 in Dublin will not go ahead as planned. The teams are in discussions about finding a revised date for the bout. Further details will follow in due course."
It remains unclear if Taylor will still fight on May 20 against another opponent, with Chantelle Cameron, Natasha Jonas (who she defeated in 2021), Estelle Mossely and Mikaela Mayer, who recently stated she would step in to fight the undisputed lightweight champion if something happened to the Serrano fight, all possible names she could face.
American Mayer said last month: "I know that her and Serrano have a rematch clause and they should be fighting, but if for some reason it doesn’t happen, I’m here, I’m available, give me a call.
"I fully understand what she’s done for this sport and that she is worthy of having her next fight in her hometown at Croke Park. And maybe a lot of fighters don’t want to open themselves to that position (of fighting away) but you know me, I really don’t care. I’ll be there if I’m called upon."
Undisputed light-welterweight champion Cameron has also called for the chance to fight Taylor in the past.
She said late last year: "I think the fight makes sense now. I'm undisputed at 140, she's undisputed at 135, there's no more excuses. Before I wasn't a world champion... this and that, whereas now I'm a world champion, I was unified world champion, now I'm undisputed. I think I've proved myself that I'm worthy of fighting Katie Taylor.
"She's boxed people that haven't had those credentials and there's been nothing said. It's just the fight has happened whereas with me it's always been 'she's got to do this, she's got to do that, this and that' whereas now what's left? I've done it so now we can fight."
A fight against another opponent at the 3Arena in May before a Croke Park showdown with Serrano in September would appear the logical thing to do now, but given the number of issues that have hampered previous attempts to stage a homecoming for Taylor, who knows what will happen next?
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