Boxing
Scott Coker confirms 'dialogue' with Eddie Hearn for Katie Taylor vs. Cris Cyborg crossover fight
It appears that a boxing-mixed martial arts crossover could indeed be on the horizon for Katie Taylor and Cris Cyborg.
Bellator boss Scott Coker, for whom Cyborg competed in a successful defense of her featherweight title on Thursday against Australia's Arlene Biencowe, revealed that Taylor's promoter Eddie Hearn has "opened dialogue" for a showdown between the two.
"Yeah, I will say this. There is a dialogue between Eddie Hearn and myself," confirmed Coker to Sky Sports. "I said that I'll hit him up after the show is over, so we'll continue talking. Again, it's going to be up to Cris, what she wants to do. I know she's like, 'It's up to us,' but really it's up to her and her management to see which way they want to head.
"If they want to continue fighting MMA, because she's training MMA right now."
Taylor is next in action on Nov. 14 when she defends her unified lightweight titles against mandatory challenger Miriam Gutierrez, live on Sky Sports in the U.K. and DAZN in the U.S.
However, Coker did admit one potential obstacle to a boxing fight between Taylor and Cyborg is that they would want a second bout between the two, under MMA rules.
He continued: "To me, the caveat is going to be this. If they want to fight — and this may be a deal-breaker on some levels — but part of me feels like this: when I saw the McGregor fight against Mayweather, I felt like McGregor is not a boxer, he's an MMA fighter. Does he do boxing? Yes. But is he at the level of Mayweather? No. To me, I felt like that fight worked out the way it did, but Mayweather should have fought Conor in MMA, as part of the reciprocation.
"We'll have to work it out, but it depends what Cyborg wants to do. If Eddie Hearn wants to see who is the best female combat star, then maybe he should think about it."
In addition to Taylor-Cyborg appearing to have a chance of taking place, McGregor is hoping to return to the boxing ring in 2021 against eight-weight world champion Manny Pacquiao in a crossover attraction likely to occur after the Irishman has rematched Dustin Poirier inside the UFC Octagon in January.
