“40 is the new 30”: Taylor limbers up at public workout

“40 is the new 30,” Katie Taylor told the crowd at a public workout in Dublin, three days before her final professional fight against Flora Pili at Croke Park.

The workout took place in the Helix theatre, where a boxing ring had been set up in front of the stage. Media and members of the public watched the fighters demonstrate their moves. YouTubers brought energetic livestream coverage, while television and print reporters, including several regulars on the GAA beat, gathered more cautiously around the auditorium.

Taylor's arrival in the ring drew a rapturous ovation. The reporters had expected that she might not speak to them afterward, despite earlier suggestions that she would. Before Taylor appeared, the fighters on the extensive undercard took turns entering the ring and performing for the audience.

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40 is the new 30

Among them was Dublin boxer Bobbi Flood, who has won all three of his bouts. Former Olympian Emmet Brennan, 35, is set for his fifth professional fight against Taylor Bevan, a former Commonwealth Games silver medallist. Molly “Meatball” McCann, the 36-year-old former UFC fighter, also attended. McCann joined Matchroom as a professional boxer last year and remains undefeated after four fights. She will face Sylwia Doligala in a bantamweight bout.

The atmosphere mixed promotional excitement with the guarded mood of reporters waiting to see whether Taylor would address them. One GAA journalist summed up the room's edge with the remark: “You wouldn't want to mess with the wrong lad, would ya?”

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You wouldn't want to mess with the wrong lad, would ya?