Moylette versus Walsh box off called off- IABA take different approach

Ray Moylette and Dean Walsh will have ten days and not three rounds to convince the IABA they deserve to represent Ireland in the final Rio Olympic qualifier in Baku next month.

The light welterweight duo were initially penciled in for a mouth-watering box-off this coming Monday, but rather than fight for their Olympic lives, the pair will be monitored over a 10 day training camp by the IABA.

Presumably the situation will be the same for the middleweight pair of Conor Wallace and Micheal O’Reilly, who were also set to face a Monday night box-off. 

2016 Elite champions Walsh and O’Reilly both failed to qualify for Brazil last month at the European qualifier in Turkey. In Samsun, Walsh lost out on a controversial split decision to #1 seed Lorenzo Sotomayor, while O’Reilly slumped to an injury-affected first round defeat to unheralded Finn Ilari Kijala.

The pair are now faced with nigh-on two weeks of training alongside their closest domestic rivals and the men they defeated in December’s National finals as the IABA review the situation at both weights.