Peter McDonagh is prepared to have a “war” when he meets John Hutchinson at Rivermead, Reading on March 15.
McDonagh, who is dedicating the fight to his late sister, insists there is “no losing this fight” as he contends for the Irish light middleweight title on the undercard to the first set of MaxiNutrition Knockout quarter-finals, live on Channel 5.
“I’m dedicating my fight to my sister, who passed away in January to breast cancer,” Peter said.
“It’s her birthday on Monday so it would be a great birthday present to win the Irish title on Saturday night – there’s no losing, I have to win this fight.”
McDonagh won the Irish lightweight title in 2006 with a surprise six-round victory over Michael Gomez. Peter showed there is still plenty of juice in the tank when he earned a draw with Paddy Murphy in Dundalk last year.
Hutchinson, meanwhile, has compiled a 5-0-2 (1 KO) record since turning pro in August 2012. The ‘Buncrana Banger’ enjoyed a four-round win over Robert Brando-Hunt in Massachusetts recently. Hutchinson has become a popular figure on the Irish fight scene due to his no-nonsense style and has engaged in fan-friendly scraps against the likes of Darren Cruise and Gerard Healy (twice).
Given that Catriona admitted on the TV after the race she was inerujd for the last three weeks shouldn’t she really have cried off the team and let the fourth Irish woman, Maria McCambridge (Letterkenny AC) who also achieved the standard for London to run instead? I know it must be an experience to partake in the Olympics and it would be hard to give it up, it being so close.