“I’m not in love with it anymore” – Michael Conlan on Boxing’s Place in His Life
Michael Conlan has been in boxing longer than most fighters spend in their entire careers. Twenty-seven years, countless amateur medals, Olympic success and heartbreak, sold-out arena nights, and the highs and lows of chasing a world title have shaped him into one of Ireland’s most recognisable fighters.
But with that experience comes a shift in perspective. The fire to train, to compete, and to win is still there — but the obsession that once kept him watching every fight and analysing every opponent is gone.
He doesn’t love it like he used to.
“I don’t really watch much boxing,” Conlan admitted. “Your life is kind of engulfed in it, and you want to take yourself away from it. I’m not in love with it probably like I was when I was younger.”
Ireland’s only ever male world amateur champion assures reduced passion for the sweet science doesn’t mean he is no longer a sweet scientist and he assures he puts in the work and study when it comes to his fights and the careers of those he manages.
“When it comes to my own fighters and who they’re fighting, yes, I’ll watch,” he explained. “I’ll study their opponents, but I don’t want to be around it too much.”
This detachment isn’t born from bitterness — rather, it’s the natural evolution of a fighter who has given the sport everything. Conlan has made peace with the idea that boxing is his profession, not his identity.
It’s also why he’s firm about not wanting his children to follow in his footsteps. “I wouldn’t want my kids to be doing boxing,” he said.
“It was great for me — it got me out of the place I was in life and gave me a much better life — but my kids will have different opportunities than I had growing up.”
That sentiment reveals the double-edged nature of boxing. For some, it’s a lifeline, a ticket out of hardship, and a platform for success. For others, it’s a punishing lifestyle that demands far more than it gives back. Conlan recognises that the sport has given him a career, a fan base, and financial security — but also knows the sacrifices it demanded.
“I’ve been boxing 27 years,” he reflected. “You grow out of certain things. Boxing is boxing. I’ve had my journey with it, and it’s given me what I have — but life goes beyond it.”
It will be all about boxing come September 5 when the Olympic medal winner fights Jake Bateson in the 3Arena on September 5.
