‘Diamond Standard’ Wilson Remained Confident He’d Eventually Get his Time to Shine

Boxing kicked him when he was down but Dylan Wilson [1-0] was always going to get back to his feet never going to walk away from the sport.

The kickboxing convert, who is trained by Irish amateur boxing legend Kenneth Egan, made his debut on Celtic Clash 11 in Spain last year – and made an instant impression.

The Clondalkin light welter was involved in 16 furious minutes of action with Spanish slugger Fernando Gandarias, dropping his game foe in the second and landing countless huge shots in an old-fashioned brawl. So good was the fight that it was nominated for Debut of the Year in the Irish Boxing Awards.

It was the perfect start that left fans wanting more.

However, the idyllic start was temporary as, like they did for a lot of boxers in recent times things went downhill for Wilson. ‘Diamond Standard’ saw a host of fights fall through over the past 12 months and was left inactive. It’s a scenario a number of Irish fighters were faced with and one that prompted many to call it day.

Wilson wasn’t one of those casualties and speaking to Irish-boxing.com ahead of just his second pro fight, scheduled for Scotland this Saturday night, he reveals he never gave up on his fight dream.

“It was very frustrating. £e tried getting on at least 3-4 cards after the debut in Alicante and all the cards fell through for one reason or another.” he days. “Then a freak injury happened which topped it all off. It’s very deflating when you’re trying to keep momentum going and make a statement after a debut win but I never considered stopping. I knew this would only build character and help me later on as I develop further as a professional fighter.”

Wilson fights over four rounds on the Thriller in the Chiller card in Inverness on Saturday night and is excited to ring walk and trade leather again.

“I’m delighted to be back out. Lots of ups and downs trying to get on cards since my debut so very happy to have a set date and to be making the walk again tomorrow,” he adds before suggesting he will shine bright like Diamond style.

“I’ve definitely developed a well more rounded game having time off and I look forward to displaying it this Saturday.”