Chantelle Cameron silences the noise against Katie Taylor as rematch looms

“I was buzzing out there,” Chantelle Cameron said quietly in the early hours of Sunday morning as, not long after her greatest victory, she explained how she dealt with the hostility which cascaded down on her in a tumultuous 3Arena in Dublin. It had felt as if every one of 10,000 roaring souls in the sold-out crowd was against Cameron and supporting Katie Taylor as she finally fought at home in Ireland for the first time in her professional career.

Cameron’s face was bruised but she smiled as she absorbed the enormity of her achievement in remaining the undisputed super-lightweight champion of the world after narrowly defeating Taylor in an enthralling contest. It was Taylor’s first defeat since turning pro in 2016 and Cameron deserves immense credit for beating a magnificent champion who had craved a successful homecoming.

At the outset, Cameron’s nerve was examined like never before. But the 32-year-old from Northampton shook her head when it was suggested she must have felt very lonely in those moments when resounding booing for her was replaced by an exultant celebration of Taylor. The quiet woman from down the road in Bray walked slowly to the ring.

Cameron stressed how calm she had felt and then, with a shrug, said: “It’s just noise. That’s all – noise. As soon as that bell goes, I do what I do.” Could she hear that deafening noise, which seemed to barely subside, once the fight began? There was another shake of the head. “It’s tunnel vision.”

Her concentration had been so absolute that Cameron admitted she was unsure how the fight was being scored. In the end two judges gave the decision to her by six rounds to four, while the third saw it as a draw. “It was hard to call because when I’m fighting I’m not