Global Ray Moylette closing in on “the conveyor belt”

Ray Moylette’s [10(4)-0] continues his journey tomorrow night in New Hampshire and s just about ready to jump on what he calls the ‘conveyor belt’.

The Mayo lightweight fights in an eight-round contest on a Murphys Boxing card at the Bank of New England Pavilion in Gilford as part of the final show of the Dropkick Murphys and Flogging Molly 2018 Summer tour

The fight is Moylette’s second eight rounder as he continues his climb through the levels ahead of title shots in the second half of the year. The bout comes just one month after the Islandeady fighter’s first over the distance, with Moylette stopping Nicaraguan Jorge Morenon in the seventh round in Ipswich.

Self-critical, Moylette takes a mixed view on his most recent fight and is keen to improve tomorrow ahead of his move to title level.

Looking back, the 28-year-old told Irish-Boxing.com that “Jorge Moreno was a typical journeyman but he was advanced you could say. He had a winning record and was coming down in weight. It was good to be mixing with a bigger guy.”

“He didn’t have the skillset I have but he did have a bit of power and I had to be wary of that. I couldn’t keep him off as well as I should have – although he was on the move a lot and I was throwing single shots, something I’ve been trying to get away from since my amateur days, I’ve been trying to busy up. Every time I tried to throw combinations I was either falling in due to his distance or he was grabbing me.”

“But, through the longer rounds, it was good to be able see my conditioning play out, and the bodyshots were working. I could see him fading out and that was the result as I kept up the pressure I was disappointed with some [previous] fights, being only six rounds and ending just when I was about to get them out. I know I have a good engine and my conditioning is building up.”

His challenge in New England tomorrow is Puerto Rican former New York welterweight champion Daniel Sostre [13(5)-17(5)].

While the Hudson Valley veteran has lost eight on the spin, Moylette is under no illusion and knows he will be extended on the afternoon show.

The 2011 European gold medallist said of Sostre that “his record, it wouldn’t be a great one, but he’s still has had a lot of fights and is a very experienced campaigner who is coming down in weight, he’s had a lot of title fights, he was New York champion.

“He’s going to take me the eight rounds, he’s going to be conditioned enough and strong enough to go the eight rounds. My skillset should be at a different level to these guys but I’m still in the building [stage] of my career so I don’t need to be jumping in with World beaters just yet but I still want to be able to get the rounds in and keep developing.”

Development is key for Moylette, with promoter Assassin and coach and manager Packie Collins having big plans for the Westerner – not to mention Murphys Boxing who have consistently raved about the former top amateur.

There is plenty in the pipeline for Moylette who outlined how “there’s a ballpark plan – I hope to have a homecoming in Mayo by the end of the year, I’ve got the sanctioning from the BUI to fight for the Irish title, and I’m hoping to fight for the [Massachusetts] State title.”

“I thought my last fight [in America] would be for that but we chose to be a swing bout instead and it couldn’t be for this fight because it’s a concert-based card, the budget isn’t there, I understand that.”

“When I do get on that title train, it’s a conveyor belt, really. I’ll win the Mass title, then jump on to the Irish title, that will put me in the Top 15 in Europe, it’s a conveyor belt that will catapult me right through the rankings. I’m not rushing to get on it but, when I do, I don’t want to get off it.”

“I want to go through the rankings as quick as I can, I don’t want to fight for the Irish title and then take six months off and start boxing journeymen again.”

This conveyor belt, Moylette hopes, will roll on both sides of the Atlantic. The Celtic Warriors man is keen to be the fighter to bring big time boxing back to the south of Ireland while also acknowledging the prominence and prosperity of the U.S. scene.

“They’re two birds and the ranking points, they build up from everywhere,” he noted.

“If I can steadily move my career in America while winning an Irish and European title back here, with the combined ranking points of those two, it would catapult me to a new level. I’m capable of doing both sides and then for them to meet in the middle at the top.”

“I’m trying to be a global figure. Rather than just be built up in Ireland, I want to take over the world, and that’s the plan. I’m not happy with just an Irish title, I’m not happy with just a Massachusetts title. Even though I’ve none in the hand, I’m looking past them already.”

Photo Credit: Ricardo Guglielminotti – The Fighting Irish (@ThefIrish)