IN the 2020 review, Anthony Cacace was a mere footnote because he didn’t fight at all that year. It seemed he was finished and washed-up without ever reaching his potential. Thankfully, we were wrong because 2024 has been the long-awaited Year of the Apache and the good news is that the best chapter of all is still to come.
Cacace apart, it was a year of sunshine and shadow for Irish boxing. Katie Taylor produced another Serrano epic, but Michael Conlan took 2024 out. Elsewhere, there were losses and comeback wins for established fighters, setbacks for some and progress for others…
Fighter of the Year
Anthony Cacace
2024: 2-0, career: 23-1
HIS talent was never in doubt but there was grave danger that he would fritter it away and then he came in from the cold to face IBF super-featherweight champion Joe Cordina in the searing heat of Saudi Arabia. On the night of his boxing life, ‘The Andytown Apache’ produced the performance of his life to dominate the Welsh champion.
Those long leavers, his natural – many say freakish – power and his canny ring smarts make him a nightmare for opponents and he put Cordina down in the third round before battering the then champion into submission in the eighth.
Following on from that win Cacace appeared on the undercard of the Anthony Joshua-Daniel Dubois spectacular at Wembley Stadium against former Carl Frampton foe Josh Warrington. The ‘Leeds Warrior’ looked past his best but maybe Cacace made him look that way as he controlled the distance in a technical/tactical contest and won comfortably on the scorecards to defend his IBO title and retain the IBF belt.
What’s next? That issue has been rumbling on. It’s either a clash with Leigh Wood in Nottingham during the summer or Cacace could defend his titles against mandatory IBF challenger Eduardo Nunez in Belfast.
Lewis Crocker
2024: 2-0, career: 20-0
THE old adage ‘20 to learn, 20 to earn’ springs to mind when you take a look at Crocker’s stats. The ‘Croc’ is ready for blast-off after two wins in 2024 paved the way for his all-Ireland showdown at SSE Arena on March 1 against Limerick’s Paddy Donovan which will be an eliminator for the IBF world title.
Crocker took out dangerous Mexican Jose Felix to start the year and although he wasn’t quite as convincing in his decision win over Conah Walker in Birmingham in June, he got a unanimous decision on the scorecards.
Next up is ‘The Real Deal’ in Belfast and Crocker is fully confident of beating his Irish rival.
“I’m tougher than him, I’ve got more heart, I punch harder,” he said.
Paddy Donovan
2024: 2-0, career 14-0
TWO stoppage wins for Andy Lee-trained Donovan. He had too much for Andres Williams Herrera in Belfast in January and was the clear winner against veteran Lewis Ritson in May.
Donovan is slick and skilful and he can bang and coach Lee says his man “has the beating” of Crocker when they lock horns on March 1.
“Lewis is a very good fighter – he’s very strong and tough – but Paddy has a style that is wrong for him; Paddy can box and move and he can punch as well,” said Lee.
“I wouldn’t say anything negative about Lewis because I think he’s a very good fighter and a nice lad but Paddy just has the beatings of him and that’s it.”
Katie Taylor
2024: 1-0, career: 24-1
AS chief support to the Tyson-Paul soap opera, Taylor-Serrano 2 was another epic battle between two of the toughest fighters on the planet. This time they fought at light-welterweight and it was close again but Taylor, despite being docked a point for use of the head, got the decision once again. What is next for her? Possibly a third fight with Serrano or a third battle with Chantelle Cameron?
Kurt Walker
2024: 2-0, career: 11-0
HE may not steal the show or grab the headlines but Walker’s career is steadily building steam. Two impressive victories for him last year including a seventh-round stoppage win against James Beech junior. Walker continues to progress and will expect to be in the title mix in 2025.
Pody McCrory
2024: 1-1, career: 19-1
THE ‘Hammer’ had a going-away do at his local GAA club in West Belfast shortly before he left for Orlando, Florida in February. He would dearly have loved to bring a victory against Edgar Berlanga back to celebrate but unfortunately it wasn’t to be. The conditions were as one-sided as you will get. Everything favoured New York-born Puerto Rican Berlanga in the partisan, Latino-packed arena. McCrory struggled to catch up to the formidable Berlanga, tried to force the pace and lost for the first time in his career. He didn’t do himself justice on the night but he will be much wiser for the experience and, after his comeback in November, he is looking forward to a “meaningful fight” on the undercard of Crocker-Donovan on March 1.
Tyrone McKenna
2024: 1-1, career: 24-5-1
HE’LL always be box office. McKenna ‘officially’ retired after a one-sided loss to Lewis Crocker last year, but those gloves didn’t stay on the peg long. Never afraid to take risks he returned against old rival Mohamed Mimoune. McKenna had won a debatable decision against the Frenchman a couple of years ago and wanted to set the record straight but Mimoune’s style was all wrong for him and ‘The Mighty Celt’ was stopped in the fifth.
He returned with perhaps the performance of his career in a spell-binding shootout against local favourite Dylan Moran in his Waterford backyard to dispel any doubts that he was washed-up. Moran was down in the first but fought back furiously until McKenna finished it in the second.
What’s next? Expect more blood and guts at the SSE Arena on March 1.
Tommy McCarthy
2024: 1-1, career: 21-6
THERE was no disgrace for McCarthy late last year when he was stopped by Michael Cieslak in Poland but being stopped by Cheavon Clarke on home Belfast soil was a serious blow to his reputation and the prospects of the former EBU cruiserweight champion. He did mull over retirement but, perhaps inspired by his good friend Anto Cacace, he decided to keep going. Opening the show at 5pm for his comeback was a humbling experience for a man who has topped the bill in the not-too-distant past but he is determined to build his way back up the ladder and the next step is Vaclav Pejsar at the Ulster Hall on February 25.
Gary Cully
2024: 1-1, career: 18-2
THE lanky Naas lightweight is struggling to recapture the momentum he had before he was knocked out by Jose Felix in Dublin 18 months ago. Didn’t look himself at all against Yorkshire veteran Maxi Hughes in December and failed to win a round. The gash he sustained over his right eye in that fight will take time to heel but it will give Cully time to reflect on a career that has stalled.
Thomas Carty
2024: 3-0, career: 10-0
DUBLIN heavyweight Carty travelled to Gibraltar and rounded off an encouraging year with the ninth stoppage win of his career. Now has his sights set on fighting for the Irish heavyweight crown in New York on St Patrick’s weekend next year.
Colm Murphy
2024: 4-0, career: 13-0
SUPERBLY fit and focussed, Murphy was typically busy throughout 2024 and after four victories ‘Posh Boy’ will headline the Ulster Hall show on February 25 (live on BBC NI) against Kasimu Hamad Haji. An impressive win on the night will see him take another step towards a British title shot.
Sean McComb
2024: 0-1, career: 18-2
McCOMB had some good moments in New York when he fought Arnold Barboza junior for the WBO Inter-Continental Super Lightweight belt but not enough to win over the ringside judges. He showed glimpses of what he is capable of in that April fight but hasn’t seen any action since. Hopes to return early in 2025.
Connor Quinn
2024: 1-1, career: 9-1-1
THE path to success in boxing is rarely smooth and Quinn lost some ground after he was out-pointed by Conner Kelsall in June. Quinn lacked urgency on the night and seemed to think he had done enough to get the decision but the Englishman’s hand was raised.
Quinn has switched trainers to Ryan Burnett since then and he’ll return a little older and wiser next year.
Stevie McKenna
2024: 1-1, career: 15-1
THE year ended on a sour note for the Monaghan battler when he lost for the first time in his career against Lee Cutler in Liverpool. Before that McKenna had bashed his way to victory in a terrific battle against Joe Laws in Barnsley. Laws was down in the opening seconds but McKenna had to get off the canvas himself (for the first time in his career) before he stopped his man.
McKenna was down twice against Cutler and that made the difference on the scorecards because he had many good spells against the Englishman. His style is all-out attack so he is going to leave himself open at times but, with some work on defence, there’s no reason why McKenna can’t bounce back next year.
Aaron McKenna
2024: 2-0, career: 19-0
CONTINUES to bide his time for the fight that could propel him to stardom. Was selected for a middleweight fight series in Japan and stopped unbeaten Jeovanny Estela in his opener but the tournament, and the million-dollar prize fund, fell by the wayside. We’ll keep a close eye on him next year.
Owen O’Neill
2024: 1-1, career: 13-1
LOOKED out of sorts against Dylan Moran at the SSE Arena, O’Neill was caught early and was heavily knocked out by the Waterford fighter. Will hope to regroup, work on his fitness and bounce back next year.
Fearghus Quinn
2024: 0-1, career 9-1
A BROKEN hand restricted Quinn’s opportunities in 2024 and his one outing was a chastening experience for the Armagh middleweight. Up against unbeaten Scot Aston Brown, Quinn was caught with a big shot in the second round but recovered sufficiently to throw back when (in hindsight) covering up might have been the better option. Brown landed a massive shot to finish it and hand the Belleek native the first loss of his career.
Caoimhin Agyarko
2024: 1-0, career: 15-0
IT was disappointing that we didn’t see more of ‘Black Thunder’ after what I thought was a career-best performance against Troy Williamson in late 2023. Injury issues meant Agyarko fought just once in 2024 and he boxed his way to a shutout points win over Bahadur Karami at the SSE Arena. Hope to see more of him next year.
Ruadhan Farrell
2024: 2-0, career: 6-1-1
ONE opponent, two fights, two wins for ‘Rudy’ who picked up the Irish super-bantamweight title over a pair of clashes with Conor Kerr. He’s a battler and an entertainer and he’ll hope for a busy 2025.
James McGivern
2024: 2-0, career: 10-0
A SPARKLING display at the SSE Arena earned McGivern the Celtic lightweight title and a deal with Frank Warren’s Queensbury Promotions. McGivern built on that with a shutout points win in Liverpool in October and looks forward to an exciting 2025.
Fight of the Year
Tyrone McKenna v Dylan Moran
THE Dungarvan battle won by Belfast’s Tyrone McKenna takes this title. Travelling to his opponents’ backyard after back-to-back defeats, another loss would have been the end of the road for ‘The Mighty Celt’ but he had Moran, who had previously blitzed Owen O’Neill in Belfast, down in the first. The Waterford man was allowed to continue by referee David Irving and he scrapped his way back into it. Under pressure, McKenna attempted to hold in the second but Moran shrugged him off and went after him. That proved his undoing as McKenna took a step back and caught him with a sweetly-timed shot that finished it.
Stevie McKenna versus Joe Laws in Barnsley comes a close second.
Coach of the Year
Michael Hawkins senior
YOU can’t say that the Holy Trinity ABC boxing guru made a silk purse out of a pig’s ear with Anto Cacace but before Hawkins took him on, the Andersonstown fighter was probably heading for the list of ‘coulda beens’. With his son Michael junior as manager, Michael senior was able to get the best out of Cacace and guide him to career-best wins over Joe Cordina and Josh Warrington. More thrills and spills await next year.
The Beeb is back
AFTER years on the sidelines, the BBC has been enticed back into professional boxing and will screen the February 1 bill at the Ulster Hall live on free-to-air TV. This development is down to the hard work of promoter Mark Dunlop and it is great news for Irish fighters who get the chance to show off their skills to a massive audience and build a profile that isn’t always straightforward on subscription channels.
Colm Murphy headlines on February 1 with support from John Cooney, Tommy McCarthy, Teo Alin and other local talents.
Last roll of the dice
MICHAEL Conlan thought long and hard about hanging up his gloves and understandably so after two comprehensive stoppage losses. But the Belfast matador will return next year to roll the dice for the last time. He still has the desire to be a world champion and the belief that he can make it happen. Can he? We hope so and we’ll find out in 2025.
The new breed
SEVERAL new names popped up on the radar towards the end of the year. Cookstown’s Teo Alin caught the eye on his debut at the SSE Arena and he will be back in action at the Ulster Hall in February. Jack O’Neill (2-0) is another who looks to have the tools to carve out a successful pro career while Charle McDonagh, another Tyrone fighter, will appear alongside them at the Ulster Hall in February. Meanwhile, Armagh native James Freeman has joined Ryan Burnett’s fighting stable and will hope for plenty of action next year.
Thanks to all the fighters, managers, promoters, referees and officials who made it all happen in 2024. Best wishes for a happy and healthy 2025.