Undefeated welterweight prospect Paddy “The Real Deal” Donovan (14-0, 11 KOs) takes on arch-rival Lewis “Croc” Crocker (20-0, 11 KOs) in the main event this Saturday, March 1st, at the soldout SSE Arena (Odyssey Arena) in Belfast, Northern Ireland in a final eliminator for the IBF title. The winner of this scheduled twelve-round bout will get an opportunity to fight unbeaten world champion Jaron “Boots” Ennis (33-0, 29 KOs) for his belt later this year, if he beats undefeated WBA title holder Eimantas Stanionis (15-0, 9 KOs) on April 12th.
“Training camp has been going brilliantly. We did the first part of camp in Dublin, Ireland, with Andy [Lee, his head trainer]. Then we spent two weeks training in Saudi Arabia from February 1st through February 15th, while Andy’s other fighter, [former world title holder] Joseph Parker [Parker is a fight away from a heavyweight world title, and is 8-1, with victories over Zhilei Zhang, Deontay Wilder, and Derek Chrisora (twice) since he added Andy as his trainer], who was training for his world title fight against Daniel Dubois, which took place here [Dubois fell ill two days before the fight, so Martin Bakole stepped in as a replacement and Parker scored a second-round technical knockout victory over him on February 22nd],” Donovan said. “Then, I spent the last two weeks in Ireland before the fight.”
This is an intriguing, even matchup between two of the world’s best unbeaten, up-and-coming 147-pound boxers (with a combined record of 34-0, 22 KOs), who are both from Ireland. Crocker and Donovan are ranked in the top fifteen by three major boxing organizations and hold regional championship titles. Crocker, the twenty-eight-year-old orthodox boxer from Belfast, who will be fighting in his hometown, is ranked third by the WBA, fifth by the IBF, and seventh by the WBO. He is the current WBA Continental European welterweight titleholder and the former WBO European welterweight champion. Donovan is ranked fifth by the WBA, sixth by the IBF, and fourteenth by the WBC. The twenty-six-year-old southpaw is the reigning WBA Continental welterweight champion and made two title defenses last year. Their only common opponent was Jumaane Camero, whom they both beat via a six-round unanimous decision, winning every round, a year apart.
They also had outstanding amateur boxing careers. Crocker obtained a stellar 90-7 record and was a seven-time All-Ireland National titleholder. He also holds the record for the quickest knockout in Irish amateur boxing, at twelve seconds, which was selected as the 2015 Irish boxing Knockout of the Year. Donovan compiled an impressive 166-7 record. He was a thirteen-time Irish National champion and a silver medalist at the prestigious AIBA World Boxing Championships in 2016.
“This will be one of the biggest fights in Irish history [which will be televised live worldwide on DAZN]. You have two fighters on the verge of fighting for a world title. I am from the south [Limerick, Ireland], and he is from the north [Belfast],” said Donovan, who is taking a significant step up in competition, as is Crocker. “This has the making of being an all-Irish classic bout.”
Last Janaury, Crocker obtained a fifth-round technical knockout over 47-fight veteran Jose Felix for the vacant WBO Inter-Continental welterweight title (he could not win the belt since he did not make weight for the fight). He dropped Felix in the fourth and fifth round. Then, in June, in his previous bout, Crocker defeated Conah Walker via a ten-round unanimous decision. Crocker has fought three fights that went ten rounds, while Donovan has not gone past the ninth round.
Donovan knocked Williams Andres Herrera down twice in the seventh round en route to a seventh-round technical knockout (the first time he had been stopped) for his first title defense of his WBA Continental welterweight belt in January last year. He obtained the title after he defeated 1-loss Danny Ball via a fourth-round technical knockout in November 2023, in which Ball was dropped twice in the fourth round. In his previous outing, Donovan stopped former British lightweight champion Lewis Ritson in the ninth round in May for his second title defense. These two dominating knockout victories earned him Ireland’s 2023 Fighter-of-the-Year.
“I am in amazing shape for this fight. I sparred with [former world title challenger] David Avanesyan [31-5-1, 19 KOs], who has fought [four-division world champion Terence] Crawford and Ennis. He came from Russia to spar with me in Saudi Arabia,” Donovan said, exuding confidence and readiness for his upcoming fight. “I just need to be myself and listen to Andy. It is in God’s hands. It is going to be a very competitive fight. He will set the pace early, use his strength, and try to bring the fight to me, however, I do not think it will last. I will take over the fight after a few rounds by attacking his body and head and get a knockout win between the eighth and eleventh round.”
Donovan wants to follow in the footsteps of his fellow Irish Travellers’ boxers who became world champions. Lee (35-3-1, 24 KOs) became the first member of the traveling community to win a major world title when he became the WBO middleweight belt holder in 2014. He obtained a sixth-round technical knockout over undefeated Matvey Korobov for the title and made one defense. Lee’s second cousin, Tyson “The Gypsy King” Fury (34-2-1, 24 KOs) became the lineal heavyweight titleholder and held the IBF, IBO, and WBO titles in 2015 with a twelve-round unanimous decision over International Boxing Hall of Famer Wladimir Klitschko. He never defended those belts and stepped away from boxing for three years. Fury came out of retirement and claimed the WBC heavyweight title two years later over Wilder via a seventh-round technical knockout in 2020. He made three defenses of his WBC title.
“Since turning professional with Andy, my goal has been to be a world champion. Many fighters say this, but my skills, abilities, and attitude will make me a world champion,” Donovan said. “I can beat any welterweight fighter, whether Crocker or someone else in this division. It is an amazing feeling to be one fight away from fighting for a world title, and this thought has pushed me throughout training camp.”
One of Donovan’s best boxing skills, besides his incredible hand-and-foot-speed and slick counter-punching, is his tremendous punching power. His hard-hitting punches have contributed to his eighty percent knockout ratio. Of the eleven fighters he has knocked out, four have been in the first round, and nine have been before the end of the sixth round. Donovan has scored five consecutive knockouts and has stopped eight of his last nine opponents. In his three decision victories, he has won every round.
“My current knockout streak has given me great confidence. My last five fights have been with Eddie Hearn [of Matchroom Boxing, his promoter, who he signed with after previously being with Top Rank Boxing since he turned professional], and he does not put you in with anyone easy. It is always a 50/50 fight. So, getting knockouts on big stages is an outstanding achievement. My confidence is booming, my sparring is great, and I feel fantastic for this one,” Donovan said.
Donovan, one of ten siblings (his brother Edward Donovan is a professional boxer (7-1, 1 KO)), started boxing at four years old under the guidance of his father, Martin (known as Gugu) Donovan. Seven years later, he became a celebrated Irish amateur fighter. He trained at Our Lady of Lourdes Saint Saviour’s boxing club in Limerick with Lee’s brother Roger, who connected him to Andy. Andy has been Donovan’s head trainer and manager since he turned professional at nineteen in 2019. New York City-based attorney Keith Sullivan, who previously served as Deputy Commissioner of the New York State Boxing Commission, became Donovan’s co-manager in 2023. Attorney Sullivan was with Lee throughout his twelve-year professional career. Donovan recently added George Lockhart (who also worked with Parker) to his team as a nutritionist and sprint and conditioning coach for this fight.
For more information about Donovan’s boxing career and upcoming fights, add him on X @paddydonovan23, Instagram @paddy_realdeal_donovan, and Facebook PaddyRealDealDonovan.
“This is the fight where I make a statement and show that I am at a world level and among the best welterweight fighters on the planet,” Donovan said. “I believe this will be the best performance so far in my career.”
Crocker vs Donovan fight date, start time
The undercard is due to get underway at 7pm GMT local time, which means it will start at 2pm on the east coast of the United States and 11am on the west coast.
Crocker and Donovan’s headline bout should follow roughly four hours later, with ringwalks set for 9 pm GMT, 4pm ET and 1 pm PT.
- Date: Saturday, March 1
- Time: 7pm GMT / 2pm ET / 11.00am PT
- Lewis Crocker vs Paddy Donovan main event ringwalks (approx): 9:49pm GMT / 4:49pm ET / 1:49pm PT
Crocker vs Donovan fight card
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6 x 3 mins Middleweight: Aaron Bowen 161.2 lbs (73.1 kg) vs. Juan Cruz Chacheiro 171.3 lbs (77.7 kg)
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4 x 3 mins Super-Bantamweight: Jack O’Neill 124.1 lbs (56.3 kg) vs. Mohammed Wako 122.9 lbs (55.7 kg)
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10 x 2 mins Lightweight: Shauna Browne 134.5 lbs (61.0 kg) vs. Elif Nur Turhan 134.9 lbs (61.2 kg)
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8 x 3 mins Super-Bantamweight: Ruadhan Farrell 123.7 lbs (56.1 kg) vs. Gerard Hughes 124.3 lbs (56.4 kg)
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19:00 LIVE ON DAZN
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10 x 3 mins Cruiserweight: Tommy McCarthy 199.5 lbs (90.5 kg) vs. Steven Ward 199.7 lbs (90.6 kg)
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10 x 2 mins Featherweight: Kurt Walker 126.8 lbs (57.5 kg) vs. Lyon Woodstock 126 lbs (57.2 kg)
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10 x 2 mins Light-Heavyweight: Craig Richards 174.9 lbs (79.3 kg) vs. Padraig McCrory 174.9 lbs (79.3 kg)
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Lewis Crocker 146.7 lbs (66.5 kg) vs. Paddy Donovan 146.1 lbs (66.3 kg)
How to watch Crocker vs Donovan?
Lewis Crocker vs Paddy Donovan and the whole Point of Pride fight card will be stream live on DAZN in over 200 countries across the globe via a DAZN subscription.
