Katie Taylor has left an incredible legacy but there is so much to look forward to

Irish professional boxing now faces a future without the person who has spearheaded it for so many years. Katie Taylor bowed out of the sport she has dominated for so long in the greatest way possible on a magical night at Croke Park on Saturday. Fans, 83,000 of them, of all ages, walks of life, counties and countries came to give arguably Ireland's greatest ever sportsperson the send off she deserved. The event was promoted as a celebration of Irish culture, arts, showbiz and sport, with boxing taking place - and that's exactly what it was! ‌ Westlife and The Mary Wallopers performed on stage. Róisín O and Aoife Scott delivered spine-tingling versions of Grace and Amhrán na bhFiann in the ring. Everyone from Michael Flatley to Shane Lowry and Patrick Kielty were in attendance, with video messages coming in from the likes of Bono, Ed Sheeran, Niall Horan and Rory McIlroy. But there were also plenty of Irish boxers in attendance, who know all about big nights themselves and who will be targeting many more in the years ahead. Aaron and Stevie McKenna were ringside at Croke Park weeks after recording victories on a Zuffa Boxing show at the 3Arena last month. ‌ Aaron defeated Italy's Etinosa Oliha to win the IBF world middleweight title, while Stevie took just 65 seconds to brutally knockout Belfast's Owen O'Neill on the same night. It was absolutely fantastic to see the scenes that greeted them in Monaghan after the August 8 event, which shows they have a big support behind them. Both should be back out before Christmas, with Stevie hoping for an all-Irish bout with Callum Walsh in the near future. It is hard to believe we went so long without major boxing shows and we're after having three world title fights within five weeks in Dublin. ‌ One week before the Zuffa event, Pierce O'Leary lost his IBO super-lightweight belt to England's Mark Chamberlain in the first defeat of his career at the same venue. There is a rematch clause and 'Big Bang', at just 26, has many more huge fights ahead of him. Meanwhile, Paddy Donovan impressed once again when beating Tyrone McKenna on Saturday. He looks a world champion in waiting and is the mandatory challenger for Liam Paro's IBF belt after the Aussie's June win over Lewis Crocker. ‌ The Belfast man is among the quality crop of fighters up north and could be back in action towards the end of 2026. From Sandy Row to Andersonstown, Anthony Cacace has been on an absolutely incredible run and had a memorable victory over Liverpool Jazza Dickens at the 3Arena on St Patrick's weekend. View 2 Images Anthony Cacace celebrates his victory over Jazza Dickens (Image: ©INPHO/Gary Carr) He defends his WBA super-featherweight world title against another Scouser in the shape of Nick Ball in Belfast on December 19. ‌ Then there is Caoimhin Agyarko, who lost narrowly to IBF super-welterweight champion Ryan Kelly a few weeks ago in Saudi Arabia. That performance shows Agyarko belongs at world level and he will be back again. Sean McComb has failed to get the breaks since his hugely controversial loss to Arnold Barboza Jr in 2024, but he is top class and will hopefully get the fights he deserves sooner rather than later. One man who does have a major fight coming up is Newry native Conor Wallace, who is based in Australia. ‌ He faces the Andy Lee-trained Ben Whittaker in an eliminator for the IBF light-heavyweight world title, held by one of the world's best pound-for-pound fighters in Dmitry Bivol. The October 3 bout in Birmingham will be Wallace's first pro bout on this side of the world. A win could be life changing. Going back to Saturday and while there was disappointment for Thomas Carty, Emmet Brennan and Matty Boreland, the Dublin trio of Paul Ryan, Bobbi Flood and Adam Olaniyan were all victorious. Prospects Flood (super-welterweight) and Olaniyan (heavyweight) are now both 4-0, with the latter of them already making clear his dream to headline Croke Park one day himself. ‌ Steven Cairns is another young Queensberry fighter who was at Croke Park at the weekend, weeks after moving to 15-0 with his tenth KO win against Kildare's Senan Kelly. Like O'Leary and Olaniyan, Cairns is managed by Brian Peters, who played a massive role in getting Saturday's show over the line and the career of Taylor as a whole. The 24-year-old hopes to headline a show in his native Cork next summer. Kieran Molloy won the IBF European welterweight title in July, while another Galway man in Thomas O'Toole, based in Boston, claimed the North American Boxing Association super middleweight title in his last bout. The unbeaten pair of Tommy Hyde (light heavyweight) and Danny Keating (welterweight) are others who have fought a lot abroad, in America and Australia, respectively, but might not be too far off title fights. ‌ Some big names in their 30s still targeting success include Jono Carroll, Joe Ward, Gary Cully and Connor Coyle. Then there is the thriving domestic scene, which sees JB Promotions return to Dublin's National Stadium on September 26. Offaly's Paul Loonam, now working under Philip Keogh at Dublin Docklands, faces Belfast's Ruadhan Farrell for the BUI Irish super-bantamweight title. Bayo Alabi also returns to action after a fantastic win over Marcus Sutherland to claim the BUI Celtic featherweight belt on a big Queensberry show in Glasgow in April. ‌ Edward Donovan, brother of Paddy, faces Peter Carr in a middleweight contest, with both men aiming to bounce back from defeats to Paul Ryan, who opened the Croker card. Meanwhile, Shauna Browne and Christina Desmond, who both go way back to the amateur days with Taylor, are two others with big bouts coming up. Browne, who was Taylor's main sparring partner for two of her bouts with Amanda Serrano, headlines the iconic York Hall on October 25. She faces England's Jade Burden for the WBA Gold and IBF International lightweight titles a little over three months after winning the WBO European lightweight with victory over Lilia Cherifi. ‌ 16 days before then, another southpaw in Desmond faces Galway native Louise Creaven, who is based in Australia, in the first ever Irish title fight between two women. They meet at Parochial Hall Arena in Cork for the BUI Irish super-lightweight belt on what will be an historic occasion. The thoughts and prayers of everyone within Irish boxing and beyond remain with Lee Reeves, who is still in hospital following his fight last month. A Go Fund Me for the Limerick man can be donated to here. Want to see more of the stories you love from Belfast Live? Making us your preferred source on Google means you'll get more of our exclusives, top stories and must-read content straight away. To add Belfast Live as a preferred source, simply click here . ‌