Karl Kelly – I put people to sleep, if Rabei doesn’t run he will get sparked

The bigger he is, the harder they fall.

That’s the message Karl Kelly [1(0)-1(0)] has for fellow Dubliner Victor Rabei ahead of their light welterweight vacant BUI Celtic title fight which is set to play out on the Celtic Clash 6 card this weekend.

The title fight which has migrated from the cancelled ‘The Beginning’ show to this weekend has been billed as clash of styles, with Rabei [4(1)-0] expected to try and play matador to Kelly’s bull.

However, the Moldovan-born Dub claims he will stand and trade with the puncher, suggesting that, because he is the naturally bigger man, he may even be able to push his rival back.

Rabei also claims that super featherweight Kelly’s main weapon, his power, won’t be as potent up at the higher weight.

Clash of Styles? – Victor Rabei promises to bring the fight to Karl Kelly

The Declan Geraghty Snr-trained fighter refutes this. In fact, Kelly claims it’s quite the opposite.

‘Little Sexy’ feels the more weight, the bigger he bangs and notes he has put people to “proper sleep” in and around light welter.

“Victor should go look at all my knockouts,” Kelly told Irish-Boxing.com.

“They’ve all been at light welter or welter from the amateurs to the semi pros,” he added before listing his KO victims.

“I have had three people asleep at this weight ,and I mean proper asleep. I also mangled Karl Roche in the final of the Dublin Intermediates at 64kg when I was 19 and he was a grown man. I went to Cork and boxed a another intermediate at 64kg, Tommy Boyd, and put him asleep in a round.”

“Wayne Kenny, Si Truelove, and two other fellas, one in Liverpool and another from Portsmouth, all got knocked out at this weight. That all within the last two years so I’m happy he thinks I won’t have the power at this weight.”

“It’s the only weight I’ve ever fought at bar my two pro fights which may prove that I’m actually losing power when I drop down.”

Kelly doesn’t expect Rabei to take a total backfoot approach akin to his last opponent Lucas Ballingall, but claims that, if he doesn’t run, he will end up on his back.

“Victor is a classy boxer and it won’t be easy and I don’t expect him to run as much as Lucas Ballingall – but he won’t trade with me for long as he’ll either get knocked out or he’ll go running and that’s a fact.”

Monkstown’s Kelly will be without trainer Geraghty in his corner on Saturday night but is content that his mentor, manager, and friend Jay Byrne will man the corner.

“Deco is away on holidays this week and I’ll have Jay back in my corner for the first time as a pro and nobody knows me more than him so he’ll drag the best out of me for sure,” he added before stressing he is flying fit and feeling great at the weight.

“I am 100% fit and feeling excellent so I am buzzing to get in. I will make this an absolute war and then become one of the happiest men alive as a title is a dream and to get it so early would be just unreal.”

“I feel so relaxed as my weight is done two weeks I am eating full meals and properly hydrated and the extra week has just given me more time to practice things and enjoy it as the hard work with the weight is done.”