Katie Taylor To Face Monica Gentili On Haye-Bellew
By Elliot Foster
Katie Taylor has had her third professional opponent confirmed.
The Bray superstar (2-0, 1 KO) was last in action, live on Sky Sports Box Office, last December.
Taylor outpointed Viviane Obenauf by 60 points to 53, as part of the undercard to Anthony Joshua’s IBF heavyweight world title defence against Eric Molina at Manchester Arena.
And the 30-year-old will return to the same pay-per-view platform later this week –– on Saturday, March 4 –– when she features as part of the supporting cast to David Haye’s heavyweight grudge match against WBC cruiserweight king Tony Bellew at the O2 Arena in London.
She will come up against 39-year-old Monica Gentili (6-6, 1 KO), from Italy, over six two-minute rounds.
Gentili, a late replacement after Taylor’s original opponent withdrew through illness, lost her two title fights to date, both to Anita Torti for the female Italian lightweight title, but has won her last two –– in April and October last year –– since losing to Myriam Dellal in France.
Taylor will be hoping that a victory over Gentili will go some way to setting up a world title fight in Dublin later this year.
Haye’s mouth-watering showdown against Bellew is flanked by a stellar supporting cast.
Bellew’s fellow Liverpudlian Derry Mathews takes on undefeated Ohara Davies in a challenge for the Hackney man’s WBC Silver super-lightweight title as part of the card which also features undefeated cruiserweight Craig Glover.
Elsewhere, Sam Eggington faces ex-two-weight world champion Paulie Malignaggi in a defence of his WBC International welterweight title on the card and there is action for Ted Cheeseman, IBF featherweight champion Lee Selby in a non-title bout and Conisbrough heavyweight David Allen.
