Maloney open to giving Dunne shot at regaining title in Ireland
There may be talk of world title fights in recent times but since Munroe wrested the European title from Kiko Martinez, Dunne has made no secret of the fact that he wants it back.
Martinez took the title from Dunne in a smash and grab raid in Dublin that lasted no more than 90 seconds but the little Spaniard relinquished the title Munroe in his very first defence.
Last month in Castlebar Brian Peters offered £60,000 to Munroe to defend against Dunne in Dublin and he insists the offer is still on the table.
Now Frank Maloney has encroached on Peters’ turf by bringing Munroe to Dublin to defend the title against Fabrizio Trotta from Italy tonight.
“Brian (Peters) has opened the door for professional boxing in Ireland,” Maloney said at yesterday’s weigh-in. “This is just another step and for Brian to have a little bit of competition would be good for boxing and for boxing in Ireland because we are going to open an Irish branch and we will look to sign Irish fighters
“We will be happy to sit down and talk to Brian Peters. We would be happy to make the Dunne fight. I actually think that could be one of the biggest fights — outside of a Ricky Hatton fight — to take place in Ireland or in Britain.
“If Brian wants to sit — after what I have seen here in Ireland and the reception that Rendall Munroe has got — I would be happy to make the fight in Ireland.
“I don’t see any reason why Sky won’t come back here for a fight that could sell over 12,000 tickets.”
Munroe admitted it would be a fight everyone would want to see but insisted the matter is out of his hands.
“Everyone is always going to be asking about Bernard Dunne and I am not a disrespectful person — we are both in the game for the same thing and enjoying the game — but when it comes to who I am fighting that is down to management and promotion teams,” he said.
Munroe’s European super-bantamweight title defence against Fabrizio Trotta tops the DCU bill which will be televised live on Sky.
“He likes to come out of the blocks and I do too,” Munroe said. “He looks good for a couple of rounds and at this level you would expect he is coming to win but there is only one winner here and that’s me.”
Last week the European super-bantamweight champion picked up the Brian Clough breakthrough award at Nottingham’s Royal Concert Hall
The punching dustman beat England U21 footballer Joe Mattock and cricketer Josh Cobb to the prize in the annual BBC East Midlands awards.
Munroe, 28, started the year in sensational fashion defeating world class Spaniard Kiko Martinez in March to claim the European title
Martinez whose only loss in 10 fights to date was to Munroe, meets Gheorghe Chiopbirica from Romania over six rounds on tonight’s undercard.
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