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Jamie Kavanagh makes knockout Dublin debut as close pal Conor McGregor cheers him on

The Notorious came out to cheer for The Nuisance tonight in Dublin.

After five years spent in California with Golden Boy, Jamie Kavanagh finally returned to the National Stadium with a hard-fought stoppage victory over Hungarian slugger Oszkar Fiko.

And the bout was watched on by Crumlin childhood friend and UFC star Conor McGregor – who will certainly have been entertained by the vicious scrap he witnessed at the South Circular Road venue.

The fight began with a scrappy first round, although elite amateur Kavanagh was the slightly cleaner of the two.

The second saw Fiko warned twice for use of the head before he was staggered by a big right from Kavanagh in the closing seconds of the bout.

The Dubliner found his range in the third and twice hurt Fiko with left hooks – and the crude Central European was subsequently docked a point for holding as he look to cling on.

The Nuisance continued trying to box in the fourth against an increasingly ragged opponent.

The fifth then descended into a battle with both throwing big shots in a messy and aggressive round, with a bad cut opening over Kavanagh’s right eye.

Kavanagh reverted to his boxing skills in the sixth, frustrating Fiko who by now was on his final warning for all manner of offences.

The seventh saw Fiko deservedly docked another point for further holding and the exhausted Hungarian was finally downed by a barrage of punches by Kavanagh. While he rose to his feet by the count of eight he was in no position to continue and the bout was waved off to the delight of the crowd.

With the win, Kavanagh’s record now reads 20(10)-1(1)-1, while Fiko falls to 14(10)-13(7).

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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