It can be a cliche, but those who are familiar with the sport of Boxing and really combat sports as a whole, know that there are several stages throughout a fighter's career. Such stages have been chronicled numerous times by this observer in covering countless fighters over the last three decades that I have covered combat sports, and have been discussed as a focal point when a fighter either prepares to enter a new phase or as that fighter is on the rise up the ranks.
One such fighter that saw such a rise is Featherweight contender Michael Conlan. Conlan, a native of Belfast, Northern Ireland is a two-time Olympian and former Olympic Bronze Medalist. Upon turning professional in 2017, Conlan went on to win sixteen straight bouts leading to a world championship bout when he challenged then WBA World Featherweight champion Leigh Wood in March 2022. In a grueling back and forth fight where he was ahead on all three judges scorecards, Conlan would find himself on the receiving end of a brutal knockout at the hands of Wood where he was knocked out of the ring in what was frankly a scary scene for all who witnessed it.
Despite the knockout loss and the severity of it, Conlan would rebound to win two fights before suffering two more knockout losses in 2023. Following those setbacks in being stopped in three of four bouts, a layoff took place to allow Conlan to recover and likely time to process what had been a rough period in his career. This resulted in Conlan not competing in 2024.
From an old school standpoint, there are those, and this observer often finds himself in this category as well, who feel that often the worst thing for a fighter is inactivity, which over time can prove to be a silent killer of a fighter’s ability, and ultimately negatively affect the fighter’s career. There are times, however, where a lengthy absence can be and should be a necessity. Circumstances where a fighter finds themselves on a bad slide when it comes to wins and losses, and particularly when a fighter suffers more than one knockout loss in a relatively short period of time, would be an exception to the wisdom of inactivity doing more harm than good as it allows the fighter time to recover both physically as well as mentally.
The rebuilding process for Conlan began in March of this year when he scored an eight round decision over Asad Khan. Now, Conlan looks to continue to build momentum as he will return to the ring on Friday, September 5th against twenty-two fight veteran Jake Bateson in a scheduled ten round bout at the 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland in a fight that can be seen globally on digital combat sports and entertainment streaming platform Triller TV.
This fight, which will be for the vacant WBC International Featherweight championship figures to be a test for Conlan in his second fight back from that hiatus. Bateson, who will come into this bout off of a technical draw in his last bout against Danny Quartermaine, who currently holds the WBO and WBA versions of the European Featherweight championship in December of last year, will come into the fight with a respectable record of 20-1-1, with 6 Knockouts. While not known for his punching power, Bateson does have the type of Boxing skills that will likely put Conlan, who will enter with a record of 19-3, with 9 Knockouts, under some degree of stress at some point in this bout.
At his best, Conlan is a highly-regarded world-class boxer, who has a good mix of hand speed and power, despite only having nine knockouts in his nineteen wins. The question here will be whether Bateson can put Conlan under the type of stress and pressure where he will be tested and more specifically, how his punch resistance is following those three stoppage losses.
Boxing is and will always be a sport where the rise of a fighter will always get more attention than the stories of fighters looking to rebuild their careers. Whether Michael Conlan will be back in the position he was in three short years ago in fighting for and literally being minutes away from becoming a world champion remains to be seen and short of another setback where he might be stopped again inside the distance, we are likely not going to get a conclusive answer from this fight, assuming he wins and regardless of the method of victory if that indeed happens. This is more likely going to be another step towards the long-term goal of getting back into contention. If Conlan is successful and performs well, however, this could at minimum provide a gauge as to how many more steps might be needed in that process.
“And That's The Boxing Truth."
Conlan vs. Bateson takes place on Friday, September 5th at the 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland. The fight as well as it's full undercard can be seen globally on digital combat sports and entertainment streaming network Triller TV under its Triller TV+ subscription tier beginning at 12PM ET/9AM PT with preliminary bouts followed by the main card beginning at 2PM ET/11AM PT. (*North American Times Only.*) For More information about Triller TV including schedules, list of compatible streaming devices, platforms, Smart TVs, Local start times in your area, and region-specific pricing and Triller TV+ subscription availability please visit: www.TrillerTV.com.
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