UNDEFEATED WATERFORD WELTERWEIGHT Dylan Moran has signed a promotional agreement with Joe DeGuardia’s Star Boxing and will make his first appearance Stateside early next month.
Moran, 9-0(5KOs), has put pen to paper on a three-year deal with the highly regarded DeGuardia, the New York-based promoter who works with WBO World middleweight champion Demetrius Andrade, upcoming world-title challenger Joe Smith Jr and former champion Chris Algieri among several other high-profile prizefighters.
The Dungarvan stylist wowed viewers with his slick TV debut performance live on TG4 on Ray Moylette’s homecoming show last December, and will return to screens live on DAZN when he fights in New York on 9 March.
Moran will feature on the undercard of the WBA light-heavyweight world-title fight between Smith Jr and Dmitry Bivol at Turning Stone Resort and Casino, with an opponent due to be confirmed in the coming weeks.
He is expected to fight as many as six times in the States in 2019.
The 24-year-old will still be managed by Assassin Boxing and is also expected to fight twice in Ireland in the coming months, with a major Waterford homecoming show being eyed for later this year.
Head of Star Boxing, Joe DeGuardia said of ‘The Real Deal’s signing:
It’s great to sign one of the leading names in Irish boxing. Dylan Moran is a fantastic boxer with real pedigree. With a huge Irish connection on the east coast [of America], Dylan has every ingredient to become a star in Ireland and America. I am really looking forward to working with him.
Added the fighter himself: “As a kid, I always dreamed of fighting in America, and being on the biggest cards. Now that dream is going to become a reality.
“I’ve had a brilliant career so far with Assassin Boxing, and have had the chance of fighting on TG4, something I hope I will be able to do again.
“However, this opportunity my team have delivered is truly amazing. To join up with someone like Joe DeGuardia who has worked with the very best boxers in the States, it’s all so amazing.
To hear the plans that Joe and the guys have for me is unbelievable. No doubt the hard work starts now, and I now know if I continue to dedicate myself, the opportunities are there for me, and I will prove I am one of the best in the world.
Moran was previously ranked among the best in the world at kickboxing but has made a highly impressive start to his professional boxing career since transitioning back to the sweet science in 2017.
His new promoter works closely with Eddie Hearn and Matchroom Boxing — Moran’s US debut is on a Matchroom card — and so the Déise man could yet feature on cards involving Wicklow’s Katie Taylor, who is making waves on America’s east coast.
Subscribe to our new podcast, The42 Rugby Weekly, here:
