Opponent finally confirmed for Spike O’Sullivan
Gary ‘Spike’ O’Sullivan [27(19)-2(1)] finally knows who he will face in his first fight of 2018.
The 33-year-old was left at the altar with regards to a shot at WBC, IBF and WBA world middleweight champion not long after he knocked back a fight with Danny Jacobs after being promised a fight with the now-banned Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez in September.
It’s been a difficult few months for the Cork middleweight, but a lucrative three fight Golden Boy deal which could lead to the winner of the Golovkin-Canelo rematch has proved substantial consolation.
The first fight of that three-legged arrangement will take place on Friday May 4th in Los Angeles and plays out live on ESPN.
The Mahon man co-headlines a bill at the StubHub Centre in Carson along with teenage super featherweight talent Ryan Garcia who faces Jayson Velez.
The man likely to bare-the-brunt of a fitter and more frustrated than ever Spike is Berlin Abreu [14(11)-1(1)].
The 26-year-old Puerto Rican has campaigned mostly at welterweight and jumps up two weight classes to face the power punching Cork native.
The majority of Abreu’s record has been compiled against low-level Dominican opposition bar two exceptions in America.
In 2014 he was stopped in four rounds by former U.S. contender Sammy Vasquez and then in December 2016, his most recent fight, he outpointed Argentine David Emanuel Peralta – who was coming into the bout off a shock win over Robert Guererro – to claim the WBC Latino rankings title.
The match-up, which has been criticised by some in the boxing world, is no doubt a step down from O’Sullivan’s last opponent, Antoine Douglas. However, there may be a degree of Golden Boy wanting to showcase the Leesider and his power as well as perhaps providing a less-challenging fight following a mentally-taxing past few months.
Photo Credit: Ricardo Guglielminotti – The Fighting Irish (@ThefIrish)