Mike Tyson has admitted that he was a late entrant to the Katie Taylor fan club but has praised the Irish boxer’s skills ahead of her much-hyped rematch with Amanda Serrano next weekend in Texas.

Taylor, the world’s undisputed lightweight and super lightweight champion, defeated Puerto Rican icon Serrano in their first meeting in Madison Square Garden in April 2022 in what is regarded as the biggest women’s boxing match in history — and ahead of their historic rematch which will serve as the lead-in to Tyson’s first professional bout in two decades against Jake Paul on November 15, Tyson says that it was the Bray boxer’s performance in her win over Serrano that made him sit up and take notice of arguably the finest female fighter in history.

“I was never aware of Katie until I saw her fight Serrano,” Tyson said of Taylor to the Irish Mirror this week. “She’s a very good fighter, a very slick boxer, she has good movement.”

And it is this footwork and movement that Tyson says Taylor must capitalise on if she is to repeat her win over the 47-2-1 Serrano.

“I can see her side movement, that’s how she has to fight because Serrano comes straight forward,” he said. “She doesn’t cut off but when she comes straight forward, Katie has to go to the side, which she was doing earlier and she has to be in the condition to handle the pressure of her continuing to come forward, but she has good side movement and she’s a good puncher.

“She’s a very entertaining boxer. She does the right thing, but she’s got to continue to do it consistently.”