Taylor has been unequivocal that Croke Park would be the end and she walks away having beaten every opponent she faced as a professional.
Her only defeat came against Chantelle Cameron in Dublin in 2023. Six months later, Taylor returned to the 3Arena and avenged it to become undisputed champion in a second weight division.
After the final bell, she paid tribute to her family and somehow held the tears back as she spoke to the crowd.
“There’s nothing like an Irish mammy,” she said, smiling as she thanked those closest to her.
For a fighter who has never hidden her dislike of media interviews, there was something striking about the confidence with which she walked around the ring, microphone in hand, soaking up the final moments.
“We did it. We brought boxing back to Croke Park. You were with me in London 2012, you were with me with the heartbreak of Rio. You stayed with me when I turned pro,” Taylor said.
“I don’t know any other country that would sell 80,000 tickets for a female athlete. I’m convinced Ireland is the only country.”
Taylor will forever be defined by her trilogy wins against Amanda Serrano and leaves with a staggering list of accolades, but her true impact cannot be measured in statistics alone.
That legacy belongs to the young girl who once pretended to be a boy just to box when girls were not allowed.
She fought tirelessly to get the sport sanctioned in Ireland and included in the Olympics, before going on to conquer both the amateur and professional codes.
The belts will eventually gather dust, but the trail Taylor blazed across the sport will never fade.
