Star man Ryan O’Rourke ready for ‘dangerous’ German
‘Silent Assassin’ Ryan O’Rourke wants to make some noise by ending a relatively quiet year with an impressive victory in America.
The Dubliner takes on German Andreas Maier [8(5)-6(3)] on a Star Boxing card at Mulcahy’s Pub, Wantagh tonight [Thursday] and sees the fight as a chance to put his name back out there.
The 2020 Irish Prospect of the Year gained serious early momentum by fighting 7 times over 18 months – but tonight represents just his second fight of 2022.
It hasn’t been an ideal 12 months but O’Rourke has taken the lack of activity on the chin and is ready to fire back with a good performance and a solid win.
“It’s not the year I wanted,” he tells Irish-boxing.com.
“I would’ve liked to be more active, but that’s boxing, things happen and things don’t always go the way he want them to. I just have to keep trusting the process and working hard. I’m still only young in the professional ranks so there’s no rush.”
Weighed in ⚖️ @RyanOR12345 @StarBoxing pic.twitter.com/jIyh9oeQQe
— O’Rourke’s Gym 🇮🇪 (@ORourkesgym) November 16, 2022
Despite showing patience the 23-year-old, who is trained by his father Steven O’Rourke, feels ready to pick up the pace next year and thinks a win tonight will help in that regard.
“2023 is gonna be a big year. A year where we’ll start looking for titles and pushing on.”
Not the kind of Star tests Tony Browne and Dylan Moran were given previously, but Maier is a step up for the Dubliner.
The German, who once shared the ring with Phil Sutcliffe Jr, has upset tendencies and holds a stoppage win over Brit Atif Shafiq in Britain.
“I’m expecting a good fight,” comments O’Rourke.
“It could be cagey enough at the start, Maiers is a dangerous opponent and he’s come and upset a few people in the past. He’s a better boxer than his record suggests and is a very good counter puncher,” he adds before predicting ‘a win’.
“A knockout would always be great but I’m just gonna go in there do what I do best and make sure I get that win.”
