Katie Taylor enters the freedom stage of her trailblazing career

Katie Taylor brandishes her belts at the pre-fight press conference in New York. Picture: Gary Carr/Inpho

For someone who typically detests the promotional blitz that accompanies a blockbuster bout, there was a time when Katie Taylor would consider this sort of pre-fight press conference to be absolute hell. Not here. Not now.

This is an empowering week for the Irishwoman. She will walk out in a place and position that she has been before, but this time her label is whatever she wants it to be. The champion. The underdog. The B-side when it comes to the MC announcements on the night. It’s a birthday week. It’s a Madison Square Garden showpiece. It’s her face on Times Square billboards. It’s the biggest night of her professional career so far. It’s another landmark in a legacy few can rival.