At the age of 27, Michael is a one-year pro. A sensational prospect at 126 pounds, he was an amateur standout at the elite international level before his debut, and Ireland’s most decorated amateur boxer ever – a gold medalist at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, the 2015 European Championships and the 2015 World Championships, and a bronze medalist at the 2012 Olympic Games. He also represented Ireland for a second time at the 2016 Olympic Games, but was eliminated by extremely controversial scoring in the quarterfinal round.
Michael made his debut on March 17, 2017 – St. Patrick’s Day – at Madison Square Garden in New York and stayed very active with 10 fights in his first 21 months as a pro.
In his last fight on December 22 in Manchester, England, he stepped up to 10-round status for the first time and won a unanimous decision against his toughest opponent yet, former British Commonwealth bantamweight and featherweight champion Jason Cunningham, who was also the first left-hander Michael has fought.
Boxingscene.com’s Elliot Foster reported [excerpts]: Michael Conlan clinched his first title with a disciplined display. Conlan outpointed former two-weight Commonwealth champion Jason Cunningham to grab the vacant WBO Inter-Continental featherweight title.
Conlan will now focus on preparing himself for his third date at Madison Square Garden on St Patrick’s weekend before potentially fighting outdoors in Belfast next summer….
The Ulsterman, a Commonwealth Games gold medallist, a European amateur champion and a world amateur champion, was deducted a point for low blows in round six but was winning the fight relatively convincingly before the final bell after 10 completed rounds.
The three scoring ringside judges turned in tallies of 98-92, 97-93 and 97-93, meaning Conlan moved into double figures as a pro since turning over under Bob Arum and Top Rank. [End Foster item]
In a post-fight interview, Michael said, “I made some mistakes in there, but it was a learning experience. It was the first time I went 10 rounds. I felt comfortable in there going the distance, and I got the job done. At the end of the day, it’s another win in the bank. I’m very happy.
“I thought I had him going, but I couldn’t get him out of there. He did very well to survive. I hit him with some good shots, but he’s a smart fighter and he knew how to survive. If I had a couple more rounds, I think I could have had him out of there.”
“I’ve progressed. I’ve gone from prospect to contender. I still have a few questions to answer, but I’m happy with the way things are going.
“I’m going to be back at Madison Square Garden on March 17th for St. Patrick’s Day. Then, we want to come back to Belfast in the summer with a fight in between. I’m not sure who is next, but I want to keep stepping up.”
Michael lived in Los Angeles and trained by Manny Robles for his first five professional fights, but moved back to the U.K. in January, 2018, and began working with trainer Adam Booth. They have now worked together for five fights.
In an earlier interview, Adam Booth said, “We’re training in my private gym here in London. I think the phrase ‘training camp’ is overused. When I think of a training camp, I think of somebody getting ready for a 12-round championship fight, taking themselves away to somewhere remote and depriving themselves of any social interaction. What we’re doing is, we’re just doing continuous work in the gym.
“With Michael, it’s just constant progression and striving to be the most complete professional, and this is just part of the journey.”
AMATEUR, PERSONAL BACKGROUND: Michael said, “I was born and raised in Belfast, Ireland – I’m Irish, so I don’t like to say ‘Northern Ireland.’ I have three brothers, no sisters. My brother, Jamie Conlan, is a professional boxer. [note: former British Commonwealth super flyweight champion and recent world title challenger, currently 19-1, 11 KOs] My brother, Brandon, used to box, but not professional, just amateur. My father, John Conlan, was a boxer when he was younger and fought at national level. Now he’s the Irish National boxing coach – he’s been coaching since I started boxing and has coached the national team for about four years. My mother, Teresa, is a student mentor.
“I was seven years of age when I first stepped in the boxing gym. My brothers, Jamie and Brandon, were boxers and like every young kid, I wanted to be like my big brothers. I followed them into the gym, and that was the start of it.
“I think I had around 340 amateur fights. I know I only lost 14. I’m naturally right-handed, but I’m ambidextrous in the ring.”…
AMATEUR HIGHLIGHTS:
2016 OLYMPIC GAMES – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 123 pounds: in his first fight on 8-14-16 he won a 3-0 decision against Aram Avagyan of Armenia; in the quarterfinals on 8-16-16 he lost a 29-28 decision against Vladimir Nikitin of Russia…
From the Belfast Telegraph, by Steven Beacom [Aug. 20, 2016 – excerpts]: Michael Conlan has become one of the stories of the 2016 Olympic Games after he was the victim of a staggering judging decision in his bantamweight clash with Russian Vladimir Nikitin.
While the fans inside the boxing arena and all those watching on television were convinced that World Amateur Champion Conlan had comfortably won the three-round contest, the judges gave a unanimous verdict to Nikitin, who subsequently was unable to take his place in the semi-final due to injury, having been outclassed by the Team Ireland star.
Understandably, Conlan was furious about the decision and in an RTE television interview immediately after the fight he let rip at the judges and the International Boxing Association (AIBA), the amateur sport’s governing body, claiming the organisation was corrupt and insisting he had been “robbed.”
For the man himself, considered one of Ireland’s finest ever amateur boxers, the pain remains – so much so that he had to leave the Olympic Village.
He hopes his hard-hitting words will make a difference for other amateur boxers in years to come, so that they don’t have to suffer the way he has. “After the fight was over I felt robbed and got a lot off my chest right away,” said the charismatic young man, who was crowned the 2015 Belfast Telegraph Sports Star of the Year.
“I used some crazy words in a television interview immediately afterwards, but I wouldn’t take them back because they were my true emotions at that time. I was honest with myself and honest with every single person who had tuned in to watch.
“If I hadn’t have said what I said I would probably feel even worse now. Seeing the reaction it had in terms of getting a message out there, I am glad that I did it.
“I know some people weren’t happy with the words I used, but that interview and the reaction it has had has opened the eyes of the world to the corruption in amateur boxing. Hopefully, what I have said can change amateur boxing, and what happened to me won’t happen as much to other boxers.”
“In the dressing room, all these people were coming up to me, from the Cuban boxing team to the GB boxing team, and telling me I had won the fight. They were devastated by what happened. All the boxing people knew what went on.”
What has been heartening for the Belfast native has been the incredible support he has received since being cruelly dumped out of a competition he was widely expected to win.
The boxing fraternity has backed him, along with commentators and members of the public, who couldn’t believe that the Russian walked away the victor when it appeared Conlan had won every single round.
Conlan was keen to thank everyone who has been behind him since Tuesday’s travesty.
“The support I have had from everyone has been unbelievable, from people at home to people all over the world, and I can’t thank everyone enough for the way they have supported me,” the boxer told the Belfast Telegraph.
“I want to tell everyone how much their messages and goodwill have meant to me and my family, especially everyone who has been very vocal about the decision and called it how it is.
“It’s good to hear people from within boxing and outside of boxing say that I was robbed because that is exactly what happened.”
Never lacking self-belief, Conlan believes great things lie ahead for him.
Few would disagree. This kid is the real deal.
“I have a massive career ahead of me,” the Belfast man says with the confidence of a champion. [End Beacom item]…
2015 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS – Doha, Qatar, 123 pounds – GOLD MEDALIST: in his first fight on 10-8-15 he won a 2-0 decision against Robenilson de Jesus of Brazil; in the quarterfinals on 10-10-15 he won a 3-0 decision against Tayfur Aliyev of Azerbaijan; in the semifinals on 10-11-15 he won a 3-0 decision against Dmitriy Asanov of Belarus; in the finals on 10-14-15 he won a 3-0 decision against Muradzhon Akhmadaliyev of Uzbekistan…
2015 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS – Samokov, Bulgaria, 123 pounds – GOLD MEDALIST: in his first fight on 8-10-15 he won a 3-0 decision against Anthony Bret of France; in the quarterfinals on 8-12-15 he won a 3-0 decision against Fredrik Jensen of Denmark; in the semifinals on 8-14-15 he won a 3-0 decision against Francesco Maietta of Italy; in the finals on 8-15-15 he won a 3-0 decision against Qais Ashfaq of England…
2014 COMMONWEALTH GAMES – Glasgow, Scotland, 123 pounds – GOLD MEDALIST: in his first fight on 7-25-14 he won a 3-0 decision against Matthew Martin of Nauru; in his second fight on 7-28-14 he won a 3-0 decision against Shiva Thapa of India; in the quarterfinals on 7-30-14 he won a 3-0 decision against Bashir Nassir of Uganda; in the semifinals on 8-1-or team he won a 3-0 decision against Sean McGoldrick of Wales; in the finals on 8-2-14 he won a 3-0 decision against Qais Ashfaq of England…
2014 FELIKS STAMM MEMORIAL – Warsaw, Poland, 123 pounds – GOLD MEDALIST: in the quarterfinals (his first fight) on 4-10-14 he won a 3-0 decision against Erzhan Ordabayev of Kazakhstan; in the semifinals on 4-11-14 he won a 3-0 decision against Nikita Fedorchenko of Russia; in the finals on 4-12-14 he won a 3-0 decision against Sylwester Kozłowski of Poland…
2013 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS – Almaty, Kazakhstan, 123 pounds: in his first fight on 10-19-13 he won a 3-0 decision against Krisztian Nagy of Hungary; in his second fight on 10-21-13 he won a 3-0 decision against Brian Gonzalez of Mexico; in the quarterfinals on 10-23-13 he lost a 3-0 decision against Vladimir Nikitin of Russia…
2013 DUALS IRELAND-FRANCE – 114 pounds: in his first fight on 5-3-13 in Cork, Ireland, he won a 25-10 decision against Samuel Kristohurry of France; in his second fight on 5-5-15 in Dublin, Ireland, he won a 25-8 decision against Elias Friha of France…
2012 OLYMPIC GAMES – London, England, 114 pounds – BRONZE MEDALIST: in his first fight on 8-3-12 he won a 19-8 decision against Micah Duke of Ghana; in the quarterfinals on 8-7-12 he won a 22-18 decision against Nordine Oubaali of France; in the semifinals on 8-10-12 he lost a 20-10 decision against Robeisy Ramirez of Cuba…
2010 COMMONWEALTH GAMES – New Delhi, India, 114 pounds: in his first fight on 10-7-10 he had a 10-10 draw, but lost the tiebreaker against Jason Moloney of Australia…
STRENGTHS: Has good skills and movement…physically strong, has good punching power…had a strong amateur background…has a strong family boxing background…
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: 10 fights…52 total rounds…
AVERAGE LENGTH OF BOUTS: 5.2 rounds…
KNOCKOUT PERCENTAGE: 60 %…
DISTANCE FIGHTS: 10 rounds – 1 (1-0)…8 rounds – 2 (2-0)…
