Paddy Barnes has a shot at his first European title as a pro this weekend: he takes on Silviu Olteanu for the vacant WBO European flyweight title in Belfast on Saturday night.
As part of the promotion ahead of Saturday's decider, Barnes gave an interview to Paul Gibson of The Guardian. It covers lots, and covers plenty, including the fact that Barnes now simply laughs at the "shambles" that has become the IABA.
During the interview, Barnes admits regret at accepting the MBE he was awarded in 2015. Raised a Catholic, Barnes gave a lot of thought to the MBE before taking it in 2014, having won his second gold medal for Northern Ireland at the Commonwealth Games.
Now, Barnes tells Gibson, he regrets it.
It took me a while thinking about the MBE. I actually let it go past the deadline to accept it and I hoped they’d forgotten about it. Then I was put on the spot and so I said yes.
I represented Ireland and Northern Ireland and hoped it’d bring people here a little closer together if anything. But some people in Northern Ireland are so fucked up nothing brings them together. I thought I’d get more abuse for turning it down but now I feel like it was a bad decision.
I was just trying to show respect and maybe bring the communities together. That’s the only reason I accepted it.
It's a great interview that's well worth your while.
By the way, if you do want a ticket for this weekend's fight in Belfast, tickets are still on sale:
See Also: "It's A Disgrace, Enough Is Enough": Outgoing IABA Secretary Lambastes Organisation
