Boxing fans will be hit with a knockout blow if they want to attend Katie Taylor’s bout this weekend as the majority of remaining tickets are being flogged for more than €500.
The Bray brawler will take on two-division world champion Chantelle Cameron on Saturday in the 3Arena - but the event isn’t a sell-out.
Olympic gold medallist Michael Carruth said the prices of the remaining tickets are a “bit too pricey” for regular fans of the sport and thinks any ones that are unsold should be given to boxing clubs across Ireland.
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The Dubliner, told The Irish Mirror: “It’s like everything, you’re putting more money into your car for petrol.
“Everything has gone up in the last couple of years because of what has gone on in the world.
“It is a little bit too pricey for people who are probably struggling in every aspect of their life who want to try and support her.
“It’s not her (Katie Taylor) who is putting the prices up, it’s the promoters and the managers. You can’t blame the two boxers.”
The retired fighter, who is now an IABA Boxing Development Officer with Dublin City Council, said it would be a “nice thing” for clubs around Ireland to receive any unsold tickets.
He explained: “It would be a nice thing to do. There are over 360 boxing clubs in Ireland and if the tickets aren’t being sold, they should be giving them to people who will make good use of them like young girls or young boys who want to go and support her.
“Spread the love as they say. If they’re not going to be used, get some people in to support her. Katie deserves a full house.
“There will be people there just for the sake of being there while there will be people who should be there that won’t be.
“If they have spare tickets then by all means give back to the IABA and say ‘Listen we have some tickets here, distribute them through the clubs, do what you can with them.”
Listen to our brand-new podcast Untouchable: How Katie Taylor Changed The World
He added: “Some of the lads from the boxing club in Drimnagh are going and they’re paying over €200 and they’re not great seats they’re getting either. The best ones are over €1,000.”
The 55-year-old said he hopes to one day see Katie Taylor fight in Croke Park and said a larger venue would mean prices wouldn’t be as high.
There had been hopes this bout which was initially supposed to be a rematch with Amanda Serrano could take place in the GAA’s HQ but this fizzled out after a row developed about who would pay the security costs.
He added: “Professional boxing … is only about money, it’s not about titles, it’s all about money and that’s the bottom line with it.”
Carruth, who is best known for winning the welterweight gold medal at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. said he didn’t get a ticket for this weekend’s fight when both Taylor and Cameron will put their unblemished records on the line.
Saturday’s fight, which will be a 10-round light-welterweight title fight, will be the first time Taylor has fought in Ireland since she turned professional in 2016.
At present, the 36-year-old is a two-weight world champion and the current undisputed lightweight champion.
Going into this bout, Taylor has won 22 times with six knockouts while Cameron, who is also the current undisputed super-lightweight champion, has had her hand raised 17 times.
The Dubliner said he thinks Katie will win via points and said he’ll be cheering for her at home.
It comes as The Irish Mirror found tickets being sold for €1,525, €1,400, €800, €765, €523.50, and €511.50 still available on Ticketmaster’s website yesterday.
These included standard and resale tickets - which are priced at the amount other fans paid or less. The cheapest available was a singular resale ticket for €251 while there were also a handful of standard tickets priced at €258. When first released, ticket prices started at €80.
Across the city, another big event will take place on Saturday when Leinster Rugby takes on Stade Rochelais in the Heineken Champions Cup final at the Aviva Stadium.
The two blockbuster sporting events mean hotel prices are sky-high for Saturday night.
On Booking.Com, there were 60 properties available in Dublin with all of them pricing their hotel rooms at more than €200 for one night. The website also said 87% of properties were unavailable this Saturday.
The Spencer Hotel and The Riu Plaza The Gresham Hotel were both priced at €409 while the Clayton Hotel in Cardiff Lane had rooms for €399.
The Irish Mirror contacted Matchroom Boxing, who are Katie Taylor’s promoters, about the price of the remaining tickets but nobody responded to our queries.
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