McLaughlin wants a shot at McDonagh-Byrne winner
Boston based Donegal man Micheal McLaughlin wants a crack at the winner of Peter McDonagh and Dean Byrne’s November 7 Irish title fight.
The Murphy’s Boxing puncher hasn’t been shy about expressing his Irish title desires over the last 12 months and was scheduled to fight for the Irish light middleweight strap before then-champion Lee Murtagh was forced to retire through injury – resulting in the cancellation of the scheduled bout.
However, McLaughlin always felt he was a natural welterweight and set his sights on the green strap a weight division below, and he is now hoping to secure a shot at the eagerly anticipated Byrne-McDonagh ‘Second Coming’ clash.
“That’s a massive domestic fight at home and I’d love a crack at the winner,” McLaughlin told donegalnow.com.
“I’ve said before that I feel I can beat any welterweight in Ireland. All I can do is keep proving myself by looking good winning and hopefully I’ll get my chance sooner rather than later.”
Before he can try secure a clash with the Byrne McDonagh winner McLaughlin first has to overcome Shakha Moore [11(2)-21(5)-3] from Connecticut at the Melrose Memorial Hall in Boston on October 30th.
The Donegal man knows securing his 13th win won prove easy, but is confident he can beat the fighter who took Vivan Harris the distance.
“The fight was originally down for October 10th in Lowell but that card became too packed so it was pushed back to the end of the month,” he explained.
“It’s similar to the last fight against Roberto Valenzuela where I was in with a much more experienced boxer but I want as tough a challenge as possible as I feel it helps me raise my own game.
“He’s a tough guy who went the distance with former World Champion Vivian Harris not so long ago so it’s another big test for me.
“He’s a switch hitter so I’ll have to be on my guard against that but it’s good for my development to fight against different styles and hopefully I can move up a level with a win.
