Fagan speaks

04 September 2009 – By Oisin Fagan

I return to action on the undercard of Bernard Dunnes fight at the O2 on September 26.

This fight means a huge amount to me. It’s a fantastic opportunity, on another great Brian Peters show, with a chance to return strongly from my last outing. Although I have no opponent as yet, I am looking forward to coming back with a bang and perhaps, with another couple of wins behind me, it could lead to a showdown with Andy Murray, for his EBU belt.

If not that, then I would relish a chance at Kevin O’Hara for an Irish title – I think that would be a really tasty fight. Although, the most prevalent fight in my mind right now, is a rematch with my pal, Eddie Hyland for his IBF International title.

I think the fans would love to see that happen again, almost as much as I would. It was a fantastic fight, but with a slight tactical tweak on my behalf, coupled with the bout happening on a neutral fight-card, in a neutral venue, I think the result could be reversed and I could pull off a big win to propel my career in the right direction.

Winning any titles from these guys could set me up nicely for a proper European title, perhaps against John Murray or John Thaxton from Britain. These would be my immediate plans; however, after that, my dream of fighting for a world title is still driving me. I have no problems admitting that I have limited skills; after all, I didn’t start boxing seriously, until I was 29 years old, so I had a lot of catching up to do.

However, to my advantage, I possess a proud Irish heart and am afraid of nobody, so that’s always a great equaliser in this sport. Furthermore, being a personal trainer and former PE teacher, I’m super-fit. The amalgamation of toughness and fitness is a formidable combination and I truly believe that if championship fights were still contended at 15 rounds, instead of 12, there would be a series of different champions out there, me being one of them.

Preparations are going well. I’m signed with ‘Dolphil Promotions’, who are a great team consisting of Phil Succliffe, Don O’Leary and Joe Clifford. They have my best interests at heart and things are working well between us all.

I have great sparring over in Crumlin Boxing Club and I’m well aware that at my age, I can’t afford to take any time off. Many people thought I was mad, when they saw me out running, just 3 days after my 12-round war with Eddie Hyland, as it was such a demanding fight; however, I just believe that hard work will prevail in the end and with faith in the big-man-upstairs, I can achieve my dreams, to fight for and to win a world title. If you don’t dream, there’s no point in continuing.

So for me, there’s still a lot I feel I can achieve and hope that I am blessed on my travels.