Dunne to run eye over old foe Kiko in Belfast
The nightmare of the fiasco at The Point last August when the powerful little Spaniard stripped Dunne of his European super bantamweight title in less than 90 seconds does not weigh on Dunne’s mind any more.
“It was unfortunate, it was disappointing but now I have put it down to experience and I can guarantee it will never, ever happen again,” he insisted yesterday.
“I didn’t even see the punch coming but I suppose that’s the beauty of the sport. That’s what makes it exciting and entertaining and at the end of the day that’s what we are in it for.”
Those dramatic 90 seconds did not present Dunne with much to dwell on other than the loss of his title and that was somewhat sobering if not shattering.
“I’ll bounce back,” he said. “It has not dented my confidence. I have accepted it for what it was. If I went in there and got a hammering over six, seven or eight rounds then I would have had serious cause for concern. But I’ve accepted it for what it was.”
The prospect of a return fight keeps Dunne excited and because of that he likes to be ticking over all the time. His wife, Pamela, is expecting a baby in two weeks time and Caoimhe has started to walk.
“The McCullough-Martinez fight will be interesting,” he said. “Of course I will be up there supporting Wayne 100%.
“But there are other aspects. I did not have much opportunity to see Martinez as you will appreciate. You don’t learn much from 86 or 89 seconds so this will be an especially interesting fight from my point of view.
“If Wayne can take a punch will he out-box Martinez? Martinez has a big punch but it is the fact that I did not see the punch that did me. If I had seen the punch coming I’d have braced myself for it but it is the one you don’t see that does the damage regardless of whether it is just a tip or a whack. If you don’t see the thing coming it will hurt you. The first I knew about it was when it hit me.
“If Wayne is clever enough he will stay away and box the ears off Martinez which was our intentions. Ours did not work out. It will be good viewing for me. I will get a look at both guys.
“I’ll be talking to both of them — unfortunately Martinez does not speak too much English — but I’ll be cheering for Wayne 100%. I am good pals with Wayne and of course I would like to see him win and get himself back up there.
“I would love a return with Martinez and I would like to think it’s not far away. Esham Pickering was installed as mandatory for his first defence of the title but with him getting beaten, the EBU have installed me as mandatory so there is a very good chance I will get first crack at him.
“As to when that will take place I don’t know. He is entitled to make as much money as he can before he boxes me again. That’s part and parcel of the game. My intention now is to get back into full fitness and be ready if and when the opportunity comes along.”
This is a non-title fight but it is one that will answer a lot of questions for McCullough when he steps in against an opponent who is 16 years younger than he is. If the former world champion is to win this one the fight must go the distance and to do that he will have to avoid that devastating punch.
Looking further ahead to the following Saturday night at The King’s Hall, legendary Tyrone football manager, Mickey Harte, has been taking time off from training Gaelic football teams to help Damian Taggart with his preparations for his professional debut on John Duddy-Howard Eastman bill.
Taggart, 25, who hails from Omagh, is hoping to get his professional career off to the best possible start and he already has the full backing of long time mentor Harte.
“I’ve known Damian and his family for a long time and he is a very determined young man,” Harte said. “I’m always interested in helping young people reach their potential and, although boxing is very different to what I’m used to, it demands the same attributes to be successful and I believe Damian has those.”
The opponent for IBF youth featherweight champion Martin Lindsay has been confirmed as Edison Torres. The dangerous Venezuelan veteran scored a KO win over former European champion David Gueralt earlier this year and just under a year ago took Kiko Martinez the distance.
New York-based Westmeath prospect Alo Kelly has also been added to the card. A friend and sparring partner of John Duddy the super middleweight is undefeated in four contests since turning professional earlier this year.
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