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Furlan
out to spoil Duddy's Homecoming
(JULY 1) The Italian Alessio Furlan is talking the talk ahead of his
middleweight clash with John Duddy on the next Hunky Dorys Fight Night
at the National Stadium, Dublin on July 14th.
After 20 fights Stateside Duddy returns home for his first pro fight on
Irish soil as he looks to press his claims for a shot at the European
title.
Standing in the opposite corner will be Furlan a tough, seasoned pro who
recently lasted into the 12th and final round with current European
Champion, Sebastian Sylvester. The man known as "Il Guerriero" (The
Warrior) believes he can spoil Duddy's homecoming and upset his perfect
record.
Speaking from his training camp in Italy the 30-year-old said, "I have
great respect for John Duddy but I will come with my own tactical plan
to beat him. He is tough and not afraid of anyone so he's just like me
in that respect. I will be out to spoil his homecoming but I'll buy
Duddy a pint of Guinness afterwards to apologise for beating him!
The former Italian and IBF Mediterranean Champion believes he has seen
some weakness in Duddy's style that he intends to exploit. "I've seen
Duddy's fight with Yory Boy Campas and it was a real war. Those are the
kind of fights that I love to be involved in.
"I don't think Duddy is an especially big puncher, but he does wear his
opponents down with an impressive work-rate. He has some boxing skills
but he's mainly a fighter and I see some flaws in his defence. I'm not
underestimating him because he's definitely a tough fighter."
Duddy expects to have a huge travelling contingent from Derry at the
National Stadium not to mention boxing fans who followed his amateur
feats down through the years at that same venue. Furlan though is not
worried at the thoughts of entering the lions den.
"I love fighting in front of big, passionate crowds and I'm sure that's
what will await me in Dublin. I travelled to Germany to take on the
current European Champion Sebastian Sylvester and I loved every minute
of that trip. I sure as hell plan on enjoying my trip to Dublin too."
Furlan has a record of 19 wins, 8 losses and 5 draws from his 32
professional outings and has vast experience having campaigned in eight
title fights.
Another undefeated Derryman on the card up against an experienced foe is
Paul McCloskey. The Dungiven light welterweight will have his first 10
round contest on the card when he meets former European title challenger
Laszlo Komjathi. The Hungarian is hugely experienced and represents the
first big test of McCloskey's career.
Komjathi is one of the few men to have taken red hot prospect Amir Khan
the distance and in his last fight Komjathi gave the Ukrainian Andreas
Kotelnik a tough night before losing on points. In Kotelnik's previous
outing he had drawn with Souleymane M'baye for the WBA light
welterweight title so it shows just how risky an assignment this is for
McCloskey.
Manager and trainer John Breen is convinced that McCloskey will pass his
upcoming test with flying colours. "Paul fights to the level of his
opponents so I expect to see the best of him at the National Stadium.
I've said right from day one that Paul can go all the way in the sport
and I think he'll start proving that against Komjathi."
In recent weeks McCloskey has been in Scotland sparring with Willie
Limond ahead of his Commonwealth title defence against Amir Khan. The
unbeaten light welterweight is also expected to spar with Alex Arthur
over the coming weeks as the Edinburgh man prepares for his WBO world
title shot.
Another of the Breen Team set for a stiff test at the National Stadium
is Stephen Haughian. The unbeaten Lurgan man tackles Manchester based
Irishman Gary O' Connor in an 8 round light welterweight battle.
Breen's interest doesn't end there however with his super featherweight
hope Kevin O'Hara also set for action. The Belfast man clashes with the
teak tough Pole Dariusz Snarski over
8 rounds.
Dublin fight fans will be looking forward to seeing unbeaten super
featherweight Patrick Hyland back in action so quickly, following on
from his impressive first round stoppage win at the Point on the Bernard
Dunne undercard last weekend.
Another unbeaten prospect in action is Huddersfield based Irishman
Eugene Heagney. He takes on Belfast's Colin Moffett over 8 rounds.
Rounding out the action packed card is unbeaten Mayo heavyweight Declan
Timlin. The Sean Mannion trained prospect will look to take his unbeaten
record to 4 and 0. |
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