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“I should have got the fight first” – Martin Quinn targeting Rabei-Kelly winner


Martin Quinn [2(1)-0] will return to the ring on the evening on July 7th and, all going well, will be a very interested observer of one of the bouts later that night.

The Crumlin lightweight is keen to face the winner of the eight-round clash between Victor Rabei [4(1)-0] and Karl Kelly [1(0)-1(0)] which is one of the main contests on the inaugural JB Promotions card at the National Stadium in Dublin.

Quinn has mixed emotions ahead of the big fight night – on the one hand being delighted to be back in the ring after a well-needed break while also being somewhat frustrated that he is not participating in the bout which is likely to be sanctioned for the BUI Celtic light welterweight title.

The Dublin 30-year-old feels he is more deserving than Kelly of a shot at the belt – which should go on the line if the Monkstown man gets through a scheduled six-rounder in Mexico in the coming weeks.

Quinn told Irish-Boxing.com that “I think, in all honesty, I should’ve got a shot at Victor before Karl. He has one win and one loss, I’ve two wins.”

“I think I should have got the fight first, especially as Victor had asked to fight me.”

Quinn is referencing a back-and-forth he had with Rabei at the press conference for Ireland’s Last Man Standing – a friendly bit of banter which resumed last week at the JB Promotions presser.

While there is nothing massively personal, Quinn is keen to move quickly into domestic dust-ups and has his eyes set on the Moldovan-born Rathmicheal man.

“Victor’s a lovely bloke and I think we’d have a good fight – I’d be the come-forward fighter and he’d be the run-away fighter,” he said with a smirk.

“There’s loads out there for me to fight. My weight is hopping with people.”

Quinn, a late starter in boxing with limited amateur and semi-pro experience, is happy to get the chance to analyse the two potential opponents – however, isn’t majorly pushed over which way the bout will go.

“It will be good for me to watch because I’ll be getting the winner,” he noted.

“I’ve been amateur with Karl, I’ve sparred Karl but I’ve never actually seen Victor fighting, I’ve just heard that he’s a good boxer. I think I’ll beat anyone so there’s no point in asking me [who wins].”

“I’ll fight either of them so I don’t really care who wins. Once I get a proper eight week camp with sparring, I will beat any one of them.”

That final point, training, is crucial. Quinn boxed on his debut in September with broken ribs and was back in the ring three months later.

The labourer was then due to feature on the ‘Celtic Clash 5’ bill in Drimnagh in March but pulled out during fight week.

“Two fighters pulled out and my ribs were at me, I broke them before my debut, I just thought that, with two pulled out, that it was not meant to be,” he explained.

“We stepped back and I just want to get back out now. I just want to get in there and have a fight. I’d fight anyone now at this rate.”

“I’m all about getting ring fit now, getting out there, getting the ‘webs off.”

“For the first fight, I didn’t have a proper camp, for the second I didn’t have a proper camp – this one, please God, there’ll be no injuries and I’ll be a different boxer.”

“The break is after doing me great. I stood back, I had a little look at things. I wasn’t eating properly, work was affecting me – now I’m jogging before work and then I’m training after work. I’m getting there.”

Acknowledging he is still learning – while balancing his own desire for big fights, Quinn outlined how “I’ll be happy with the four rounds [on July 7th] and then I’ll fight Victor or Karl at any stage.”

“I’m still a novice pro… I was a novice amateur! I’m in no rush at the minute. I know I’m 30 but there’s still a good five years left in me.”

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

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Joe O'Neill

Reporting on Irish boxing the past five years. Work has appeared on irish-boxing.com, Boxing News, the42.ie, and local and national media. Provide live ringside updates, occasional interviews, and special features on the future of Irish boxing. email: joneill6@tcd.ie

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