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Rohan Daté to take on undefeated English prospect next week


Rohan Daté [4(3)-0] will take a step up and face a fellow undefeated prospect next weekend in England.

The Waterford welterweight has marked himself out as one of Ireland’s heaviest punchers and top prospects since turning over in 2016 and now has the opportunity to really increase his standing.

Daté will fight Wes Smith [3(1)-0] on Sunday July 8th at Bracknell Leisure Centre. A four-round contest, somebody’s ‘0’ has got to go on the Siesta Boxing Promotions bill.

Cornwall’s Smith currently has three wins to his name having debuted in October of 2016 with a stoppage of Jan Korec which he followed up with a points win over Andrej Kepur in May 2017. 26-year-old Smith, like Daté, was last in action in February, outpointing the rugged Kevin McCauley over four rounds.

Déise puncher Daté, a former Elite amateur, began his career with two wins over African opposition in Dubai, where he is currently based, and followed this up with two first-round stoppages in Ireland – the second of which saw him obliterate South African Jade Karam who had done six hard rounds with Belfast middleweight Alfredo Meli in his previous contest.

Daté had been due to fight on the ‘Celtic Clash 6’ bill in Dublin originally set for June 16th but this plan has been changed following the postponement of that show to July 7th.

The 25-year-old has been in constant camp since his win over Karam in February, getting rounds in with Rio Olympian Anthony Fowler in the UAE before his return to Ireland where he has been sparring Paddy Gallagher.

Daté said that “the risks will be worth the reward as taking an undefeated fighter this early might be a risk but I want to showcase the level I believe I am at.”

The card next week also features Eli Hreen, Derek Renfrew, Sam Smith, Aaron Collins, Sam Horsfall, Billy Allington, Naylor Ball, George Lamport, Jonny Phillips, ‘Pink Tyson’ Kallia Kourouni, and is headlined by a welterweight clash between Luther Clay and French entertainer Renald Garrido.

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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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