Amanda Serrano set for warm-up fight ahead of Katie Taylor showdown in November

In her 50th professional fight, Serrano (46-2-1) moves up to the super lightweight division to face 34-year-old Stevie Morgan whose résumé includes 13 wins via knockout.

Since making her professional debut two years ago, Morgan has only lost once but she hasn’t faced anybody close to Serrano’s calibre.

The fight takes place on Saturday July 20 - the original date for the Serrano-Taylor showdown – at the Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida.

The Taylor-Serrano fight which was due to be staged in the AT&T Stadium home of the Dallas Cowboys was postponed after ex-World heavyweight champion Mile Tyson, who was due to face social influencer Jake Paul on the bill, fell ill on an internal flight in the US.

Serrano (35) is the current undisputed World featherweight champion. Taylor has no plans for a warm-up fight prior to her November 15 clash against the Porto Rican, who she beat in a memorable showdown in Madison Square Garden in 2022.

There are still lingering doubts over whether Tyson will pass the medical test for the November 15 show particularly if Most Valuable Promotions, who are promoting the show, insist on the Tyson v Jake Paul clash to be classified as a regulation fight rather than an exhibition bout.

Paul, the co-owner, and founder of MVP will feature on the July 20 card in Tampa in a cruiserweight battle against Mike Perry, a bare knuckle boxer and MMA fighter.

Meanwhile, there is speculation that Portlaoise-born, Australia-based former World champion TJ Doheny is set to land a dream fight in Japan against Naoya Inoue, who is not just a superstar in Japanese boxing but is rated as one of the best pound-for-pound boxers in the world.

With a perfect pro record of 27-0 ( 23 wins inside the distance) Inone is the current undisputed and undefeated World super bantamweight champion.

Doheny (36) has had a long association with Japan. He upset the odds by beating local favourite Ryosuke Iwasaa to become the IBF super bantamweight World champion in 2018.

He has had mixed fortunes since; losing four of his ten bouts. But he relaunched his career in Japan winning three fights there in the last 12 months.

His ability to carve out wins against the odds has raised his profile among boxing fans in the country. Now he could reap the financial rewards associated with landing a lucrative fight against Inone.

Meanwhile, on the eve of what could be the last boxing tournament at the Olympic Games, World Boxing which aims to be the new governing for the sport and be recognised by the International Olympic Committee, has announced it is staging its first World championship event in Colorado in November.

The 2024 Under-19 World championships will be held in the Pueblo Convention Centre in Colorado, USA October 25 - November 5.

Staging a world championship event is a crucial step in seeking provisional recognition from the IOC which in turn could lead to the IOC restoring boxing to the Olympic programme for the Los Angeles Games in 2028.

Meanwhile, World Boxing has signed up five new countries, India, Barbados, Dominican Republic, Peru, and Singapore, bringing its total membership to 33.

Last year, Irish boxing clubs narrowly rejected a proposal to give the Board of Directors of the Irish Athletic Boxing Association the option of leaving the Russian-led International Boxing Association which has been expelled by the IOC.

The lack of underage championships at continental and World level if Ireland left the IBA was one of the reasons why the proposal failed to secure the necessary 60 percent majority. But the issue is certain to be revisited after the Paris Olympics.

The next generation of Irish boxers will be in action at the European Junior championships which began on Friday in Sarajevo. In the wake of a threatened revolt by clubs when an initial smaller squad was leaked and published the IABA decided to send a full team of 25 boxers.

Two years ago, the team secured a massive haul of ten medals; two gold, four silver and four bronze at these championships.

Ireland team for European Junior championship

Girls

46kg Abby Molloy, Sacred Heart, Dublin; 48kg Isabel Nolan, Santry; 50kg Paige

Nickles, Banbridge; 52kg Mary Ann Furlong, Na Fianna; 54kg Molly Doyle,

Templemore; 57kg Kayleigh Byrne, Gorey; 60kg Sarah McTiernan, Drumsna;

63kg Kaysie Joyce, Clonmel; 66kg Cassie Henderson, Phoenix; 70kg Chloe Poleon,

Dunboyne; 75kg Carly Norris, Santry; 80kg Alanna Kenny, Clonmel

Boys

46kg Oliver Plachta, St Francis; 48kg Michael O’Reilly, St Paul’s, Waterford

50kg Kalib Walsh, Wexford; 52kg Eddie Corcoran, Olympic Mullingar, 54kg Jason

Donoghue, Olympic Mullingar; 57kg Joseph Mihai, Crumlin; 60kg Desmond

Sweeney, Olympic, Galway; 63kg Edward Harty, Portlaoise; 66kg John Donoghue,

Olympic Mullingar; 70kg Cathal Myers, Sligo City; 75kg William Heaphy, Golden

Gloves, Cork 80kg John Mongans, Rathkeale; 81+kg Johnny McGinley, Gateway,

Sligo.