We might yet have a third Munster final next summer.
On Saturday night, fiery Cork middleweight Gary 'Spike' O'Sullivan will look to improve on his run of three straight impressive KO victories when he takes on Dominican puncher Melvin Betancourt in Boston. A victory for Spike would catapult the 'Celtic Rebel' to a Top 5 ranking with the WBA, and likely throw him into the world title mix- where he aims to face a fellow Munster man.
In an interview with IFL, famed promoter Lou DiBella told that, were 'the best dressed man in the room' - the room in question being Boston's magnificent Fenway Park - to continue winning, a fight with Limerick's WBO middleweight champion Andy Lee would be a distinct possibility.
DiBella said of O'Sullivan,
This guy is making noise in the middleweight division, and my guy Andy Lee is one of the middleweight champions. Andy wants to fight in Ireland at some point, and Andy and Spike in Ireland would be a very, very big event. So, I think somewhere down the line it's certainly a possibility- [Spike's] just gotta continue taking care of business."
Spike's promoter Ken Casey of Murphys Boxing - perhaps known better to more casual fight fans as the lead singer of the Dropkick Murphys - was far less ambiguous in his assertion that Lee vs Spike will happen, and on home turf:
Lou DiBella will be hassled non-stop, daily by me, because Lou owes me a favour. I'd love to see [Spike] and Andy go at it in Ireland, and I think the fans would love that too.
O'Sullivan, whose record currently stands at 20-1 (13 KOs) mentions Fenway Park as a potential venue, but I reckon Irish fans might prefer a trip to Páirc Uí Chaoimh or Thomond Park if Spike and Lee decide to fight the power at some point next year.
Add to that a trip to Semple Stadium to take on Tipp's Matthew Macklin, who impressed with a comeback victory two weekends ago, and you've got a mini middleweight Munster championship.
With Lee, Macklin, Spike, O'Kane, Keeler, Quigley, Cummings & Meli. Has Irish mwt division got as much depth as entire irish UFC invasion?
— Kevin Byrne (@KevooByrne) May 19, 2015
