PIERCE O’LEARY says his career has been like something out of a Rocky movie – and he can get himself a Hollywood ending by winning the world title.
O’Leary – – formerly trained at the iBox gym in Bromley.
Pierce O’Leary says his career has been like something out of a Rocky movieCredit: Richard Pelham / The Sun
The Irishman was staying over 400 miles away, sleeping on the floor of a flat above a pub in a bid to chase his dream.
O’Leary told SunSport: “I was living in London and I was in the iBox gym, I was I was surrounded by great people.
“But the main thing was I was living in a not so good of a place which was living above a pub, which is damp, manky, smelly, and I was living on the floor.
“So sleeping on the floor wasn’t wasn’t really great, but I think that’s what you got to do. It’s a real Rocky story.
“If you really want to make it and visualise success. I went through and done it, I’ve been there. Look, I went to the iBox and I had nothing.
“I had literally nothing, met some great people and obviously I ended up with a promotional deal off Frank and Queensbury.
“Now here I am now after taking a step from Dublin to London on my own at 20 years of age with 1,000 quid in my pocket and going back to Dublin with a promotional deal for the world world title in front of my own people.”
O’Leary has since moved to Liverpool to train out of the Rotunda gym under coach Joe McNally.
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will make his return in April against Arslanbek Makhmudov while Oleksandr Usyk takes on the king of kickboxing Rico Verhoeven.
features for the first time since making the switch to Zuffa Boxing and Fabio Wardley will defend his newly won heavyweight crown.
Canelo Alvarez will be hoping to return after his defeat to Terence Crawford and heavyweight king Oleksandr Usyk will also need to defend his straps.
Derek Chisora will fight for the 50th and (perhaps) final time against Deontay Wilder while Daniel Dubois is also on the comeback trail.
A whole bunch of British stars could also take a leap into superstardom, with the likes of , Hamzah Sheeraz and Adam Azim ready to join the very top of the sport.
March
- Sat 14 – Jazza Dickens vs Anthony Cacace – WBA super-featherweight title – DAZN
- Sat 21 – George Liddard vs Tyler Denny – British & Commonwealth Middleweight title – DAZN
- Sat 28 – Moses Itauma vs Jermaine Franklin – DAZN
- Sat 28 – Sebastian Fundora vs Keith Thurman – Amazon Prime PPV
April
- Sat 4 – Deontay Wilder vs Derek Chisora – DAZN PPV
- Sun 5 – Caroline Dubois vs Terri Harper – Sky Sports
- Sat 11 – Tyson Fury vs Arslanbek Makhmudov – Netflix
- Sat 11 – Conor Benn vs Regis Prograis – Netflix
- Sat 18 – Callum Smith vs David Morrell – DAZN
- Sat 18 – Manny Pacquiao vs Ruslan Provodnikov
- Sat 25 – Lawrence Okolie vs Tony Yoka – DAZN
May
- Sat 2 – Zurdo Ramirez vs David Benavidez – WBA & WBO Cruiserweight titles – Prime Video
- Sat 9 – Fabio Wardley vs Daniel Dubois – WBO title – DAZN
- Sat 23 – Oleksandr Usyk vs Rico Verhoeven – WBC title – DAZN
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He was living with a friend before moving into an apartment of his own – but still the father-of-two is training painfully away from his young family.
O’Leary said: “At the end of the day, it’s tough.
“I’ve got two young kids at home with my partner and one of them is only six months and the other one is five.
“They’re at home, always asking when is Daddy coming home, so look, that that that’s tough itself. She’s looking after two kids.
“She’s looking after me. She’s looking after everything else. She just has it as hard as what I have her over here, do you know what I mean?
“So we both support each other on that and that’s the main thing. That’s what gets me through days when days are tough over here.
:We have each other and I have to stay focused and keep smashing each day and get every opportunity that you can to try to breakthrough.
“And this is my breakthrough fight now at the moment in time in the 3Arena.”
After years of travelling Britain for fights and training, O’Leary’s crowing night could come on his doorstep.
In fact, he is so close to home that he could even stroll to the arena.
But O’Leary said: “I could walk, there’d be no problem. I could walk it but I’d rather not.
“I’d rather stay away, the fans and everything else it’d be too mental.”
O’leary now trains in LiverpoolCredit: @pierce.oleary
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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