Jason Quigley Backs Entertainer to Byrne his Way to Domestic Title
Jason Quigley has set an ambitious early target for rising prospect Aodhan Byrne — a title fight before the end of the year.
The former world title challenger believes Byrne has the talent to move quickly in the professional ranks and has already earmarked championship boxing as a realistic short-term goal.
Quigley says the plan is to keep the Kildare fighter, who debuted late last month, active throughout 2025 while steadily stepping up the level of opposition, with the hope of positioning him for a belt before the year is out.
“Would love to have him fighting for a title towards the end of the year,” Quigley told Irish-boxing.com after Byrne’s debut victory in Donegal.
When pressed on whether that timeline was realistic, Quigley showed no hesitation.
“By the end of this year? Absolutely. Why not? He has all the skill, all the talent.”
While the long-term ambition is clear, the Donegal native stressed that Byrne’s development will be based on meaningful fights rather than easy early wins designed to pad his record.
“We didn’t put him in there with a guy who was going to fall over in one round because that’s no benefit to him,” he said. “He’s a high-quality operator and he needs to be in against high-quality fighters. That’s going to progress him and take him to the next level.”
The Unit 3-trained fighter also demonstrated his growing support base on the night. Although the bout took place in Donegal, a sizeable travelling contingent made the journey from Kildare to support the new professional.
Quigley believes that backing gives the fighter flexibility when it comes to future fight locations.
“He’s got a brilliant fan base here as everybody can see,” he said. “There’s also a massive crowd that drove up from Kildare to see him as well. That’s the great thing about Aodhan — he can fight in Donegal, he can fight in Dublin, he can fight in both places.”
For the remainder of 2025, Quigley says the priority is activity as Byrne adjusts to life in the professional ranks.
“This year is about him getting into professional boxing and finding out what it’s all about,” he explained. “But keep him busy, keep him active.
“You see professionals turning over and going 8, 9, 10-0 and they’re no further forward than when they turned pro,” he said. “If you’re him, you move. That’s the way it is.”
With the plan centred on regular fights and competitive opposition, the aim is to position Byrne for a title shot before the close of the year — or early in 2026 if the opportunity doesn’t materialise sooner.
“The goal is potentially to get a title towards the end of the year. If not, have one lined up for the start of the following year,” Quigley added. “But the goal is keep him busy, keep him active. He’s a quality operator and he deserves being busy against good fighters.”
