As one of the darlings of Irish boxing, Michael Conlon has many fans who see him as the kind of scrapper that boxing fans can fall in love with. From his passionate Olympics experience to the success of his professional career so far, Conlon definitely looks to be one for the future as well as the present. In his next match-up, though, he’ll be up against a hugely experienced fighter in TJ Doheny.
The 34-year-old Irishman will be taking on his countryman in what looks to be an excellent fight in Belfast. Previously the holder of the IBF Super Bantamweight title from 2018-2019, this is one of the most experienced fighters that Conlon has come up against. The fight, set for August 6th, will see the two clash heads in a 10-Round Super Bantamweight fight. Who will come out on top?
Who will win?
With a five-year age difference, and a five-year difference in their professional careers (4 years pro versus 9), both fighters have a pretty intriguing contrast. Conlon is both the taller and the one with the longer reach, having a 69” reach versus 68” to Doheny. The clash of an orthodox versus a southpaw (Doheny is always an easy one for fans to love, too.
Conlon arrives with a 15-0-0 record, with 8 knockouts in his career. Doheny, though, has a patchier 22-2-0 record, though he has a hugely impressive 16 KOs to his record. The biggest question comes down to activity; it has been close to 18 months since Doheny fought, whilst Conlon last fought just under 100 days ago. He last fought in April, when he defeated Ionut Baluta in a majority decision victory. Doheny also last fought Baluta, doing so in March 2020, but he lost by unanimous decision.
The odds
At the moment, Conlan is the clear favorite, with -700 odds victory in his favor. Doheny is around (+500) to win at the moment, so most expect that this will be a victory for the younger of the two. This is not likely to be a knockout for either, though, with both fighters showing exceptional durability in the past and thus unlikely to find themselves on the canvas anytime soon during this one.
Conlon is favored to win by unanimous decision as it stands. It is hard to see the more experienced of the two being able to keep up with the onslaught from the focused Conlon. With such a length of time between flights, too, rustiness could become an issue against the fresher, younger Conlon.
Expect a good fight and a proper scrap, but we expect that Conlon will come out on top in a decision. Doheny is arguably too wily to get knocked out at this stage in his career but is also unlikely to have the stopping power in his hands to put Conlon down for good.
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