Limerick Homecoming for Donovan and Hedderman
Professional boxing could be heading back to Limerick, hints Jim Donovan.
The new to the scene pro moved to 2-0 in Letterkenny last weekend and is hopeful his third trip to the ring could be in his home county.
The 21-year-old says he could head home with fellow Treaty man Kian Hedderman and bring a pro show to Munster County for the first time, Willie Casey and Andy Lee.
“Limerick has missed out on professional boxing for years, Donovan noted. “There are some great fighters there like Paddy, Eddie (Donovan, Jim’s brother and Paddy’s brother), me, and Kian Henderman. There hasn’t been a professional fight night in Limerick for years and something should be done. Boxing fans in Munster and Limerick are hectic. Any venue in Limerick will fill out.”
Fighting in his second pro fight only five weeks after his professional debut in Letterkenny last weekend, Donovan blasted out Bartlomiej Wlodarczyk, dropping the Pole in the opening round with a nifty left and closing the show with a picture-perfect right at the 1:44 mark of round one.
“A new day, new experience,” Donovan described his pro boxing debut in Ireland.
“He’s a tough opponent who came to win, but obviously, skills pay the bills. I feel like I’ve been a pro for the last four or five years because I’ve been in a professional boxing gym since I was 14 years old. The debut was a long time coming and hopefully, I’ll be 3-0 by the end of the year with a big 2026 coming.
“Andy (Lee, James’ head trainer and co-manager) is the mastermind behind it all and a big thank you to my manager, Keith Sullivan, too. My two training camps as a professional boxer have been with Paddy for his big one and Joseph Parker for his fight this weekend.”
Speaking on his display, his manager, Keith Sullivan, said: A great performance. An excellent showing in Windsor Park, and tonight he got his first knockout. Jim Donovan is a diamond in the rough. He’s going to be the next Irish superstar and carry the Donovan name in front of the big Irish boxing crowd. But there’s only one Jim Donovan!
“We have some irons in the fire if it doesn’t happen in Limerick so we can get him to 3-0 before the end of this year,” Sullivan concluded.
