Mcgivern aims to sparkle again on return to the ring

JAMES Mcgivern is aiming to finish off the year with another impressive performance in tomorrow night’s bout with Jordan Ellison in Wakefield.

The Commonwealth Games bronze medallist will fight in a behind-closed-doors contest broadcast on the Sky Sports show and streamed on American network ESPN.

The Belfast man has made it clear that he is determined to make rapid progress up the boxing ladder and is highly rated by manager Jamie Conlan.

Mcgivern said: “I’m excited for this fight, and then over the next year I just want to get more fights under my belt and learn as much as I can. I’ll showcase my talent and show everyone how good I really am.

“It’s crazy to think I’ll be fighting on Sky Sports and ESPN+ too. I’m used to watching Premier League footballers on Sky Sports and now I’ll be on there myself.

“I’m back at the venue I fought at in August, so we are definitely more prepared now we know what’s coming. We know how the set-up goes, so we can put our own strategy in place as far as making weight and recovery.”

Due to Covid-19 restrictions, professional boxing in Belfast has been off the radar but it is hoped that once fans are able to return that shows will once again be staged in the city.

Next month, Sean Mccomb meets Gavin Gwynne for the Commonwealth lightweight title and victory would place him in a position to headline a big bill later in the year.

Meanwhile, Ulster welterweight Aidan Walsh was given a boost when it was revealed that London’s Copper Box Arena is set to resume hosting the Olympic qualifying event for European boxers next April.

Back in March, Monkstown ABC man Walsh impressed with a unanimous 5-0 points win over Estonian Pavel Kaminin on the same night that the qualifying tournament was halted due to the virus.

All of the weight categories for both men and women were stopped at either the last-16 or quarter-final stage, and the event will pick up where it left off when it runs from April 22-26.

Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, said: “London is the sporting capital of the world and it’s fantastic that our city will host Europe’s best boxers as they compete for a place at the Tokyo Games.”