‘I Thrive Off It’ – Kieran Molloy basks in the spotlight
Kieran Molloy [4(3)-0] says he will feel at home in the spotlight when he makes an early homecoming Friday.
The young Top Rank fighter makes a bold early career move, topping a Conlan Boxing bill in Galway in just his fifth pro fight.
Cranking up the pressure further is how well the show has been received, selling out in three hours and instantly becoming the hottest ticket in town.
It means the former Oughterard BC amateur takes centre of a big stage in his first eight round fight – but he assures he will more than cope with being centre of attention.
In fact, he says he loves the added focus and pressure to perform.
“I thrive on it,” he said when speaking to Conlan Boxing’s media wing. “I love it. Whenever we had Elite finals at the National Stadium we always had a couple of hundred up and that was always when I fought at my best. When you have that added pressure, the noise, the crowd I loved it, that’s what its all about.”
Such were ticket sales that all involved have said Molloy may have already outgrown the Salthill Leisure Centre. The fighter himself is confident he will become a Galway regular and is certain they will need a bigger boat moving forward.
In fact he predicts he will be a Pearse Park headline act in the not to distant future.
“I feel like this is the start of things to come and the first of many shows in Galway,” he adds.
“It sold out in three hours so we are going to have to look into bigger venues going forward. It’s great to see that excitement, people are hungry for boxing in Galway. We can build on this and push toward big stadium fights.
“I think we can be in Pearse Stadium in three or four years. I know I have the support back home and maybe next year or the year after we can do a soccer stadium, something smaller than Pearse Park. I’m very grateful to have the support going forward.”
Molloy faces late replacement Fernando Mosquera [6(3)-3(0)] on the West Coast, a Spanish based Columbian he is confident he can stop.
“I’ve been watching bits of him, he’s a slick enough boxer but I feel like my power should ware him down after a couple of rounds. I’ve covered all angles ahead of this fight coming up, that’s were your confidence comes from your preparation. I’m just ready for it now and looking forward to putting a show on Friday night.”
