Padraig McCrory had to conquer grief, as well as Leonard Carillo

Padraig McCrory revealed that he has been battling through the loss of a friend while he prepared to fight Leonard Carillo.

McCrory confronted Carillo at Belfast’s SSE Arena on ProBox TV’s first promotion in the United Kingdom. The Irishman, who was fighting for the first time since his defeat by Edgar Berlanga earlier in 2024, survived an early scare in the first round to outpoint the heavy-handed Carillo over 10 rounds.

Post-fight, spoke about how tough had been his preparations following the death of one of his friends. He fought through the emotions and despite not being particularly happy with his performance he overcome a dangerous puncher in his return from a stoppage defeat.

“I’d probably give it a four or five out of 10,” the 36 year old told BoxingScene. “If I want to get back to fighting to where I was, I’ve got to do better than that. But after eight months and after suffering my first defeat, it’s good to get back into the ring. 

“It’s been a difficult camp; we lost a friend this week. Big Frankie Carrothers, who passed away at 33. My dad’s uncle passed away last week, so it’s been a difficult time, but it’s good to get back in the ring and get the win against a guy who’s got knockout power. I thought I managed the fight really well.

“It’s probably the most nervous I’ve been leading up to a fight. Because I know what it means now, and I know how a defeat can affect you. You can go from the very top to the very bottom. Thanks to ProBox TV and Conlan Boxing, they came to Belfast, and I was the main event after my first defeat.” 

In the first round McCrory dropped Carillo, 35 and of Colombia, but he took a huge left seconds later and remained on shaky legs for the rest of the round. The Irishman said that the experience he gained from fighting Berlanga contributed to his survival.

“It was a great experience,” he said. “I learned from my first defeat as well, as I showed; I didn’t go out swinging and looking for revenge after getting buzzed. It was a great fight – a great learning fight – and just great to get back to get back with a win.

“In my last fight what was going through my mind was, ‘Let’s try and get him back.’ [This time] I thought, ‘Let’s get through the round’. 

“If you look at my last fight I was slightly wobbled and then I started trading, and I paid the price. This time I didn’t. I got through the round, I managed the fight, and I won the fight.”