Two Irish Welters turned down TV fight with Dylan Moran

When you’re the best in your country at your weight then call-outs are inevitable!

That’s how Assassin Promotions Conor Slater quite cheekily explains why Dylan Moran [7(5)-0] has been namedropped with increased regularity of late but the young fight boss reveals that some other Irish welters are less keen.

Both Rohan Daté and Keane McMahon are willing and able, and have claimed that fights between them and the Waterford welter would be massive draws and the natural big fight for an increasingly exciting 147lbs division.

In fairness to the pair, they argue Moran may be the only man willing to agree to fight and thus see him as the best route to domestic titles.  London-based Date recently stated four Irish welters turned down the chance to fight him for a title, while Dubliner McMahon has been vocal in his desire to fight both Moran and Jay Byrne while suggesting John Joyce has rebuffed fight offers.

Moran, who turns 24 today, won’t be drawn on names and is very much anti call-out, stating only that he wants domestic fights.

Slater, Moran’s new manager, claims the Déise fighter is now in such a position that he doesn’t need to go the call-out route, but says he understands why Moran is being mentioned.

“Dylan is a super talented boxer and, in my opinion, the best welterweight in the country by some distance,” he told Irish-Boxing.com ahead of Moran’s six-rounder with Nicaraguan Nelson Altamirano [10(6)-20(11)-2] this Friday on the Ray Moylette Mayo Homecoming card.

“I think if you’re a welterweight prospect you’re probably right to try to call out the best welterweight in the country. Boxers always want to test themselves against the best,” before agreeing a clash with ‘The Iceman’ with regard to the biggest welterweight fight out there.

“I think Keane McMahon is right that Moran-McMahon is probably the best welterweight fight out there.”

“Dylan doesn’t need to be calling other guys out. He’s respectable guy who’s focussed on his boxing. We won’t let him be inactive waiting for domestic fights to come along.”

“We have a plan for next year that will probably see him one of the busiest Irish fighters, he’ll be boxing in two different continents and probably four different countries, and I suspect he’ll have multiple belts come the end of 2019.”

While Moran prefers to avoid the verbal sparring, he is not adverse to trading at domestic level. Indeed, by all accounts he has been pushing for a BUI Celtic title fight to be made.

Assassin see some all-Irish fights in the Kilmacthomas prospect’s immediate future but seem to be looking at the Ray Moylette route for their latest signing.

“Dylan is progressing really well and will fight anyone and is looking ahead to getting stepped up in terms of quality. We have a great plan for Dylan for next year, fighting abroad multiple times, and back home, and we have a few belts lined up.”

“I think some of these (domestic) fights are natural ones to happen. Keane was tied up with this Celtic Clash, and Jay was fighting in Scotland,” Slater noted before revealing that two other Irish welters were offered the a fight with Moran live on TG4 this weekend.

“We made offers to two other Irish welterweights and their teams didn’t want to know.”

“I say teams, because I’m sure as a boxer you’d love to fight the top man in the division and on TV,” he continued before expressing Assassin’s delight to have signed one of a number of welterweight prospects.

“We are over the moon to be working officially with Dylan. I’ve known Dylan for a while now, and his previous manager Kieran Farrell, we helped look after him for his last few fights and it was a natural thing for us to link up, and we are delighted.”

“He had a lot of suitors.”