Andy Lee backs ‘mature’ Paddy Donovan for World level assault
Not quite to perfection just yet – but Paddy Donovan is maturing into an elite operator claims Andy Lee.
The power-punching, slick southpaw enjoyed something of a breakout 2023 and is now primed to break into the world reckoning moving into 2024 according to the former world champion.
Stoppage wins over Luis Eduardo Souza Borges da Silva, Sam O’Maison, and Danny Ball helped the 25-year-old secure a Matchroom contract, a WBA Continental title and a WBA world ranking.
It sets the Munster man, who is just 12 fights into his pro career, up for a big 2024, and Kronk graduate Lee believes he is ready to make the big opportunities set to come his way.
He gets out early, as he will appears against Williams Andre Herrera at the Ulster Hall in Belfast on Saturday. On paper, it looks like keep-busy action for one of a number of Irish fighters moving into the contender space but Lee is backing his charge to impress nonetheless.
“Paddy has trained extremely hard for this fight and he’s really maturing into a world-class professional boxer,” Lee said. “Watching his skills improve each day and also seeing how intelligent he is in the ring leads me to believe this will be another star performance from Paddy.”
Former world middleweight champion Lee also co-manages Donovan with New York City-based lawyer Keith Sullivan, who is also backing top-end success for the older of two professional boxing brothers.
“We believe Paddy has the skill, talent and hunger to be a world champion,” Sullivan commented. “More importantly, he has the willingness to continue learning and developing under Andy’s meticulous training style.”
