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Holly Holm may not have won her latest fight in the octagon against Ketlen Vieira, but promoter Eddie Hearn has judged her as worthy of a bout against Irish boxing champion Katie Taylor.
The Irish Independent is reporting that Holm is the new 'front-runner' to fight the Olympic gold medalist Taylor in a massive homecoming event targeted for Croke Park in the fall. That venue can hold over 80,000 fans and would undoubtedly be sold out for Taylor's first professional boxing match on home soil.
Originally the plan was to have Taylor rematch Amanda Serrano after the two put on a Fight of the Year contender at Madison Square Garden in April. That bout saw Taylor rally back from early trouble to win a razor-sharp split decision. Both women agreed to run it back in the fall but now the Independent claims negotiations are at an 'impasse,' opening the door for Holly Holm.
Holly Holm is coming off a controversial split decision loss at UFC Vegas 55 which many fans declared was an outright robbery. However, there's no denying that much of the fight was a dull affair, with Holm continuously clinching Vieira and holding her against the cage. Given how lackluster Holm's recent performances have been, having her step in for Amanda Serrano would be something of a disappointment.
There's no denying Holm's credentials when it comes to combat sports, though. 'The Preacher's Daughter' went 33-2-3 in boxing between 2002 and 2013, winning multiple women's welterweight titles and defending them seventeen times. In MMA she is 14-6 and won the UFC women's bantamweight title off of Ronda Rousey in 2015. Her headkick knockout of Rousey has made her one of the best known female fighters in the world.
Holly Holm's gym releases statement on UFC Vegas 55 loss demanding accountability for judges
While fans of Ketlen Vieira argue that she landed the more damaging punches in her fight against Holly Holm, Holm has a lot more people saying she won that fight. Her gym Jackson-Wink recently released a strongly worded statement following the bout claiming bad judging was ruining MMA's reputation. They wrote:
"Judges need to be held accountable for making mistakes, just like everyone else is held accountable, penalized, and punished for wrong doings… Judges are not above everyone else… Why are their decisions so untouchable and are never overturned? If this is not fixed, the legitimacy of this sport is at question!"
At this point, Holm's team has not made an official appeal to the Nevada State Athletic Commission to review the results of the fight.
