Boxing
Christopher Walker with Michael Conlan - Retirement, marathon training, and the world champion he wants to face next
Conlan vs. Walsh: Subscribe to watch - Friday
A world title seemed inevitable for Michael Conlan once upon a time.
The Irish superstar, arguably his country’s finest male amateur fighter, appeared destined for a run at the top of the professional game after securing multiple accolades in the unpaid code.
With his career moving along nicely on both sides of the Atlantic, Conlan, a proven draw in both New York City and Belfast, received his first world title crack in fight number 17 when he ventured to Nottingham to challenge Leigh Wood.
Unwilling to play it cautiously in the final stanza, Conlan met Wood head on, but he was hurt early in the round before a follow up attack forced him out of the ring and unable to continue. For almost 11 rounds, Conlan had fought the perfect fight, but he somehow managed to grab defeat from the jaws of victory.
A second world title opportunity was arranged in the following year, but Conlan struggled to cope with the pressure placed on him by Luis Alberto Lopez and he closed the year by enduring a shock loss against Jordan Gill.
In the space of 18 months, Conlan’s world had been flipped upside down as he went from heir apparent to a fighter considering retirement after three shattering defeats.
“I was very close, very close,” said Conlan when asked if he was about to call it a day during an exclusive chat with DAZN News.
“I know If I would've spoke in the immediate aftermath then I would've said it then regretted it. My missus said to me ‘just say nothing.’
“In the dressing room. I was like, I don’t want to do this b—s no more. It’s a hard game and you’re jumping into fights you shouldn't have took on six weeks' notice. It’s not the best decision is it?”
“There was lots of chaos going on outside the ring too. My head wasn't in the right place. I went away to train for a marathon and in that training, I knew I still had more to give.”
Relocating to Sheffield after a lengthy spell with Adam Booth, Conlan set up the next phase of his career with Grant Smith as he ignored the voices that urged him to retire.
Picking up two morale boosting wins against Asad Asif Khan and Jack Bateson, Conlan instilled enough belief that he can earn a third world title opportunity in a featherweight division where the landscape is always changing.
WBC International honours will be up for grabs meaning a lofty ranking with the governing body will be forthcoming for the victor, and that suits Conlan as there is one world champion he is desperate to test himself against.
“Bruce Carrington. Bruce Carrington for the WBC belt,” revealed Conlan when discussing the fight he wants most.
“That’s the route I want to go down. The WBC route. One of the nicest belts in boxing. Bruce is from New York. He’s a lovely guy, but that’s the belt I want and he has it.
“The fact he’s from New York makes the fight even better because I sell well in New York, he’s from New York, and it’s a big fight in the Garden. What a way that would be to do it, going back to the Garden to win a world title where I started my career. To cap it off there would be special.”
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