Katie Taylor's relationship with father Pete, year of 'turmoil' and what boxer told him ahead of split before Olympics

Katie Taylor is all set for what she has described as the biggest fight of her career this week as she prepares to make more history.

The undisputed super-lightweight world champion faces Amanda Serrano in a rematch of their 2022 Madison Square Garden clash, which Taylor won split-decision.

It is now over eight years since the Bray fighter split from her father Pete ahead of the Rio Olympics.

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The pair went their separate ways in 2016 - less than four years after Katie's Olympic success- following the breakdown of Pete's marriage to the boxer's mother Bridget.

Later that year, the Bray Bomber crashed out at the quarter-final stage of the Olympic Games in Rio, suffering a defeat to Finland’s Mira Potkonen.

Speaking to Ryan Tubridy on the Late Late Show a few years ago, the undisputed lightweight champion explained how 2016 had been a year of "turmoil".

She said: "I would describe that whole year as 'turmoil', there was a lot of turmoil within our family relationships and it is no secret at this stage that myself and my dad parted ways throughout that year and my whole training regime was turned upside down.

"I was going from club to club just trying to get spars here and there. I was sleeping in the car in between sessions and I wasn't eating properly.

"But I still genuinely believed I was going to win gold and I believed that was my destiny.

"When things don't pan out the way you hoped and dreamed, you can't underestimate how heart-breaking that is. As an athlete with my mentality, winning is everything and that was easily the lowest point of my career."

Katie turned pro a few months later and has won all of her fights since.

But Pete previously said he didn't want his daughter to turn professional.

He told Green Blood Boxing : "I was never keen on Katie turning professional. I just didn't want her to turn professional. It's a different game to the amateur women.

"It was hard enough in the corner before and now you see her and her head's out here...black eyes, cuts.

"Obviously I [got] my daughter into boxing, and between us it kind of raised women's boxing in Ireland.

"And I'm not being discriminate, but I don't like female professional boxing to tell you the truth."

Admitting that he was "probably going to get into hot water here", Pete added: "I like the boxing, I think they box great, but I just don't like the state they come out of it in - lumps here, lumps there, and their nose is over there.

"Lads can wear a broken nose, but I don't think women can, you know."

Katie and her dad were pictured together for the first time in public since their split in late 2019.

In her documentary, 'Katie' she said: "The first time I had to go training without him, I was driving in by myself and the tears were rolling down my face.

"I just felt like every time I was stepping into the ring without my dad at that time, I was missing an arm."

Meanwhile, Pete previously told the Paddy Holohan No Shame podcast: "She (Katie) has good morals. She said 'if you’ve split up with my mother, then I don’t want you in my corner.'

"She knew what the outcome would be. She knew that she’d be missing me in the corner but she still had the morals to go ahead and do that. You’ve got to respect that. She was reared good.

"There’s not many people who’d risk losing a European, World and Olympic title by not having your father as a coach.

"She backed her ma ...although it’s hurtful for me - but I’ve still got to take my hat off to her."

The pair do seem to have a relationship again, with Gary Cully, who was trained by Pete, fighting on two of Katie's cards in recent years.

On both those occasions, Katie could be seen speaking to her father and posing for photos in the various events ahead of fight night.

But Pete told ahead of Katie's bout with Chantelle Cameron in May how he has never watched her fight either time Cully fought on the same show.

He explained: “I’m always nervous.

“I won’t watch the fight because I can’t control anything that’s happening. Once Gary Cully’s fought, I’m out of there. It was the same last time when Gary fought on Katie’s show [in October 2022], I left, I didn’t watch the fight.

“I’m afraid I’ll start shouting something in, and then I might shout something quite opposite of what Ross [Enamait, Taylor’s coach] is saying to Katie, and then she’ll recognise my voice… I wouldn’t want to confuse the situation.

“Plus I might end up having a heart attack anyway!”

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