Andreas HaleOct 14, 2025, 11:03 AM ETCloseAndreas Hale is a combat sports reporter at ESPN. Andreas covers MMA, boxing and pro wrestling. In Andreas’ free time, he plays video games, obsesses over music and is a White Sox and 49ers fan. He is also a host for Sirius XM’s Fight Nation. Before joining ESPN, Andreas was a senior writer at DAZN and Sporting News. He started his career as a music journalist for outlets including HipHopDX, The Grammys and Jay-Z’s Life+Times. He is also an NAACP Image Award-nominated filmmaker as a producer for the animated short film “Bridges” in 2024.Follow on X
Taylor beats Serrano for third time to complete trilogy (1:11)Katie Taylor wins by majority decision to defeat Amanda Serrano for a third time and retain her title. (1:11)
The fight will be a rematch of their exciting and bloody 2023 encounter, which Serrano won by unanimous decision and became Puerto Rico’s first undisputed champion in the four-belt era. The rematch, however, will be contested under different rules as Serrano-Cruz 2 will be fought under equal rules to men with 10, three-minute rounds.
“Every time I step into the ring, I fight for all women, for equality and for Puerto Rico,” Serrano said in a statement. “Getting to fight three-minute rounds in a unified world title defense in front of my people will be one of the proudest moments of my career. When I got injured last March, I promised I’d come back to fight in Puerto Rico, and now the moment is finally here.”
“I want to thank Erika Cruz for her choice to face me over 10 x 3:00 (minute rounds) and for joining me in making this statement for equality in women’s boxing,” Serrano said. “Together, we are showing all the young girls out there that they can do anything they put their mind to, and that women’s boxers deserve the same opportunities as men.”
Cruz (18-2-1, 4 KOs) has gone 3-0-1 since the loss to Serrano. Fighting out of Mexico, she is looking forward to reigniting the storied boxing rivalry between Mexico and Puerto Rico and hopes to avenge her loss to Serrano.
“I’m very happy and excited for this great opportunity to once again face the great Puerto Rican champion, Amanda Serrano,” said Cruz in a statement. “I’m grateful to my promoter, Universal Promotions, and to MVP for making this rematch a reality. This is the most exciting rivalry in world boxing. Mexico versus Puerto Rico means a guaranteed war. If our first fight was a colossal battle, you can’t miss what will happen on January 3. Viva Mexico!”
Serrano recently signed a lifetime deal with Most Valuable Promotions, where she will complete her boxing career before transitioning to the role of chairwoman of MVP’s women’s boxing initiatives. She will lead in efforts to identify, sign, develop and market the promotion’s growing roster of women athletes. Although there was some speculation that Serrano’s 16-year boxing career was winding down, “The Real Deal” still has at least one more fight left in her.
Taylor beats Serrano for third time to complete trilogy (1:11)Katie Taylor wins by majority decision to defeat Amanda Serrano for a third time and retain her title. (1:11)
Katie Taylor wins by majority decision to defeat Amanda Serrano for a third time and retain her title. (1:11)
CloseAndreas Hale is a combat sports reporter at ESPN. Andreas covers MMA, boxing and pro wrestling. In Andreas’ free time, he plays video games, obsesses over music and is a White Sox and 49ers fan. He is also a host for Sirius XM’s Fight Nation. Before joining ESPN, Andreas was a senior writer at DAZN and Sporting News. He started his career as a music journalist for outlets including HipHopDX, The Grammys and Jay-Z’s Life+Times. He is also an NAACP Image Award-nominated filmmaker as a producer for the animated short film “Bridges” in 2024.Follow on X