A certain week in mid-March already had Irish sports fans salivating, and that was before Jason Quigley was handed a title shot.
The seven day feast of Irish sport starting on St Patrick’s Day is one that will suit just anyone from this little island who has any interest in a ball being struck, a punch landing flush or a horse galloping home to victory.
During that period we’ll be blessed with two huge international games in different discipline. The Ireland rugby team host England in a potential Six Nations decider and the Republic of Ireland soccer team are set to play Wales in the 2018 World Cup qualifiers.
Fans of the national games are catered for with the AIB All-Ireland club finals in Croke Park as well as some quality Allianz league action while enthusiasts of the sport of kings will be kept occupied by the Gold Cup.
If combat sports is your passion, then there’s a lot to look forward. Joseph Duffy will be fighting at UFC London to improve his next deal (wherever that may be) and the Olympic hero Michael Conlan is set for his professional debut in New York.
Although the spectacular week has lost Katie Taylor, it has gained a title fight featuring Donegal’s Jason Quigley.
This is unbelievable https://t.co/zoUafKNuTo
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) January 25, 2017
The 12-0 boxer will take on 23-3 Glen Tapia for the NABF middleweight title on 23 March. The 10-round headliner will go down in the Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in California.
Quigley enters the bout with a pristine professional record with his latest win coming by way of first-round knockout over Jorge Melendez in December. The bout featured on the undercard of a main event that saw Joe Smith Jr knock legend Bernard Hopkins clean out of the ring.
His opponent hasn’t enjoyed the best of form lately, suffering back-to-back fourth-round TKO losses in his last two bouts. He warned the Irishman not to take this one lightly, because he very much intends on coming to fight, as he explained to ESPN.
“I’ve been in Quigley’s position before, so I know exactly what he’s feeling. He’s trying to prove himself and he’s looking at me like his step up.”
“At the end of the day, because of my last performances, I feel like I really don’t have the privilege to speak on what I’m going to do, but just know that I’ll be more than ready to show Quigley and the boxing fans that I am more than just a step up.”
You all know what season it is #Strap Let's get it #TeamQuigley #ElAnimal #GBPonESPN #TheRise 👊🏼🇮🇪 https://t.co/RyECkMslkL
— Jason Quigley (@jay_quigley) January 27, 2017
Someone call Doc Brown to fire up the old DeLorean, because that week in March can’t come soon enough.
