Andy Lee hoping to secure “the right fight” next
The biggest fight in boxing was announced at the weekend, with Canelo Alvarez finally set to take on Gennady Golovkin in what promises to be a titanic middleweight title clash.
The two top names at 160lbs will face each other on September 16th, and there is an Irishman hoping to eventually share the ring with either.
Former WBO champ Andy Lee [35(24)-3(2)-1] is looking for one final title tilt to round off his illustrious career, and is planning a return to the ring before the end of the year – if he can secure the all-important “right” fight.
The Limerick southpaw fought in New York in March for the first time since losing his title in December 2015, outpointing KeAndrae Leatherwood.
The comeback win in the bag, Lee confirmed that he would take a short hiatus for the birth of his first child, and intends to return to training with Adam Booth in December.
This aforementioned “right” fight is not necessarily an immediate title fight, however the 32 yea old cited the need for a fight that would at least position him for a title challenge
Speaking last night on Newstalk 106FM’s Off The Ball, Lee said that “I’m rated at number five with BoxRec, so I’m still in with a shout. as you know, I’ll be back in training in September and, if the right fight is offered to me, one that gets me motivated, makes sense career-wise, then I’ll go again. A fight that I want to take, may a fight that would lead to one of those guys [Canelo or Golovkin].”
Lee was in studio primarily to discuss the Golovkin-Canelo clash, a fight he has high hopes for, and one he believes could be something of a modern day Hagler-Hearns.
When asked how he would approach a fight with the WBC-WBA-IBF champ, Lee outlined how “from the start you’ve got to get Golovkin’s respect, because he’s a guy that builds up a head of steam, gets momentum in a fight and eventually he methodically breaks you down.”
“You’ve got to give him a little taste of his own medicine, obviously a lot it’s easier said than done.”
“You’ve have to go out there and get your respect straight off. Just for the first few rounds, try to hang in there with him, give as good as you get. You’ve got to take chances and just let your hands go, throw bombs when he throws bombs. Because he does give chances, he’s not a defensive master in any sense. He almost invites you to throw at him”
Listen to Andy Lee’s segment on the show in full below:
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Gavan Casey and Joe O’Neill on Episode 4 of The Irish Boxing Show
