BREAKING – Dennis Hogan secures surprise middleweight world title shot
Dennis Hogan [28(7)-2(0)-1] will challenge for the middleweight world title in December.
‘The Hurricane’ will make it back to back world title fights when he fights Jermall Charlo for the WBC 160lbs crown at the Barclay Center, New York on December 7.
The fight has been rumoured for some weeks now, but Irish-boxing.com can confirm it’s a go and will be officially announced on Monday.
Many feel that the Kildare fighter should already be a world champion following his controversial clash with WBO light middleweight beltholder Jaime Munguia.
A rematch with the Golden Boy and Zanfer-promoted Mexican had looked likely after their dramatic fight in April. As the saga rumbled on, it then looked as though the pair would share top billing on a Golden Boy card in October but now it seems Hogan is to take a different route entirely.
Indeed, Hogan has had to move up in weight to get a second tilt.
‘The Hurricane’ was rumoured to box American starlet Erickson Lubin [21(16)-1(1)] in a WBC final eliminator as part of Al Haymon’s Premier Boxing Champions series on Fox TV.
The winner of that rumoured fight was to get a shot a shot at the green belt which surprise champ Tony Harrison is due to defend in a rematch versus Jermell Charlo next.
However, it’s the other Charlo brother, Jermall Charlo the Kilcullen man will face, as he makes the out of the blue move up to 160lbs to pursue his world title dream on a PBC card.
Charlo is undefeated in 29 fights and is a two weight world champ having previously held the IBF light middleweight title. The American was upgraded from WBC interim champion to champion after he defeated Brandon Adams in his home town of Houston earlier this Summer – and after Canelo Alvarez was given ‘Franchise Champion’ status by the beyond-parody governing body.
It’s a massive platform and opportunity for DDP Sport’s Hogan. The middleweight division, is stacked at present and winning the strap would allow the 34-year-old to call out names such as Gennady Golovkin and Canelo Alvarez.
It’s also a brave move and shows Hogan’s world title desire. Having been burnt last time out Hogan could have bide his time for a second light middleweight shot, but by all accounts he wanted the quickest route possible back to a world title fight. The suggestions are none of the light middleweight champions were interested so he moved up.
Interestingly enough, Luke Keeler has also been linked to a December middleweight world title fight. ‘Cool Hand’ has put his name forward to fight WBO Demetruis Andrade and if both win the first ever all Irish world title fight could be a unification.
