Donovan must avoid becoming ‘emotionally involved’ in his world-title eliminator with Lewis Crocker, says his trainer.
Former middleweight world champion Lee was 12 months retired from the sport in February 2019 when he caught the itch at Dublin’s National Stadium.
Lee initially vowed to put the feelers out for Donovan, an elite talent who had first crossed his radar at the age of 11 under the guidance of his brother, Roger Lee. “I’m proud of the man and fighter he is. We are very, very close, I think. I’m his mentor. I’ve been mentoring him since the day I started training him.”
Even between fights, when Donovan is off duty, Lee and his boxer will chat most days. That proved invaluable to Donovan between 2021 and 2023 in particular, when he lost a number of relatives in quick succession and his dear friend, fellow Limerick boxer Kevin Sheehy, was murdered. Lee’s technical acumen is not the only perk. For the last five years, Donovan has absorbed via osmosis the fight preparation of former heavyweight world champions Tyson Fury and Joseph Parker, training alongside them for showdowns of global interest including their respective victories over Deontay Wilder.
“I’ve been preparing him for when he’d be in the situation when it was his turn to be the headliner,” Lee says of Donovan. “Now, he’s headlining. Even though he hasn’t had that experience yet, he’s been at all of those big fights and he’ll know what to expect.” It should be stressed as well, though, that Crocker is no plodding brawler but a finely tuned technician in his own right.
Crocker V Donovan Irish Boxing
Ireland Latest News, Ireland Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
The Andy Lee advice that helped Joseph Parker land KO win over Martin BakoleJoseph Parker stopped Martin Bakole in the second round of their heavyweight bout
Read more »
Andy Lee explains crazy 24 hours after late change of opponent for Joseph ParkerThe Irish boxing coach and former world champion will be in Joseph Parker's corner on what is being described as the best fight card in history
Read more »
After reviving career with Andy Lee in Dublin, Joe Parker reaches for world heavyweight summitThe Samoan-Kiwi, once an afterthought, challenges Daniel Dubois for the IBF heavyweight title this Saturday.
Read more »
Lewis Crocker, Paddy Donovan, and the biggest all-Irish fight in living memoryBelfast’s ‘Croc’ meets Limerick’s ‘Real Deal’ in a literal 50-50 on 1 March. The winner will fight for the world title.
Read more »
Lewis Crocker v Paddy Donovan prediction as star makes 'lights will go out' vowLewis Crocker and Paddy Donovan clash in an IBF Welterweight world title eliminator
Read more »
‘Groundbreaking’ former State forensic scientist James Donovan dies aged 80Dr Donovan provided crucial evidence for several high-profile cases and survived a car-bomb assassination attempt by criminal Martin Cahill
Read more »