Callum Walsh says it’s “unbelievable” to think that his next fight will mark his professional debut in his home country of Ireland. The unbeaten junior middleweight from Cork, who has fought his entire fledgling professional career in the United States to this point, will face Poland’s Przemyslaw Runowski at Dublin’s 3Arena on September 20.
Talking on UFC Fight Pass prior to Cain Sandoval’s knockout of Romero Duno, Walsh told interviewer Doug Fischer that the idea of returning home is “unbelievable.”
“Since the start of my career, I wanted to go and fight in Ireland, and it’s been a long time coming,” said Walsh. “You know, I’ve had 11 fights out here, 11 wins, and now it’s finally time to go back and put on a show for the Irish people back in Ireland.”
Asked by Fischer whether he would feel extra pressure, fighting in front of friends and family – and UFC honcho Dana White – Walsh said that in fact, “it just makes it more fun for me. It’s going to make it a lot more enjoyable, you know, to have a big Irish crowd there, and hopefully there’ll be some alcohol in the crowd.”
His promoter Tom Loeffler noted that Runowski is significantly more experienced than the Irish ingénue, but that he presented the kind of challenge Walsh needs at this stage of his career.
“He’s the number one rated fighter in Poland,” Loeffler said. “Callum’s 11-0 with nine knockouts. Runowski is 22-2, with a lot more experience as a professional. But these are the type of fights that Callum needs to take if he’s going to headline UFC Fight Pass and headline the 3Arena.”
Asked how he saw the fight unfolding, Loeffler said that “It’s a great fight. Great fight. It’s gonna be a chess match. It’s gonna be a lot of fireworks, and the Irish fans are definitely coming out.”
“I don’t think it’s gonna be a chess match,” countered Walsh. “I’ve never really been involved in a chess match. I’m gonna go in there and I’m just gonna knock him out. He hasn’t ever been finished. On September 20, there’s a first time for everything, and it’ll be the first time he gets knocked out.”
Kieran Mulvaney has written, broadcast and podcasted about boxing for HBO, Showtime, ESPN and Reuters, among other outlets. He also writes regularly for National Geographic, has written several books on the Arctic and Antarctic, and is at his happiest hanging out with wild polar bears. His website is www.kieranmulvaney.com.
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