Dean “Irish Lightning” Byrne Makes NYC Debut in “Erin Go Brawl II”
February 24, 2009
St. Patrick’s Day Eve, Monday Night, Mar. 16, WaMu Theater in Madison Square Garden
Sean Mannion to be honored for 25th anniversary of world title fight at MSG
(New York, N.Y.) The latest boxing sensation in a long, growing line of Irish boxers who’ve emigrated to the United States is unbeaten light welterweight Dean “Irish Lightning” Byrne, who makes his New York City debut fighting on the St. Patrick’s Day Eve (Monday, March 16) “Erin Go Brawl II” card, presented by Irish Ropes Promotions, at WaMu Theater in the famed Madison Square Garden.
2004 Olympian Andy Lee (16-1, 13 KOs) takes on 3-time world title challenger Antwun “Kid Dynamite” Echols (31-9-4, 27 KOs) in the 10-round main event, while former WBC bantamweight champion Wayne “Pocket Rocket” McCullough, 1992 Olympic silver medalist, fights in the 10-round co-feature against an opponent to be determined.
Byrne (10-0, 4 KOs), who had more than 200 amateur bouts, is a former Irish amateur and Australian professional national champion. The Crumlin, Ireland native now fights out of Los Angeles, where he’s trained by Freddie Roach and has sparred at the Wild Card Gym with superstars Manny Pacquiao, Juan Marquez and even Oscar De La Hoya for a few rounds. Bryne is in an 8-round bout versus TBA.
McCullough started the Irish boxing explosion in the U.S., followed by Stevie Collins, Kevin McBride and then John Duddy and Lee. “One of the reasons I came to the U.S. to fight was what they did here,” Byrne said from training camp in Los Angeles. “I watched Stevie Collins and the Irish haven’t had a world champion in 12 years since him. Everything is great here (U.S.) for boxing – training, gyms, trainers, and sparring. A year ago, I was going to Boston (where, ironically, Roach is from) from Australia but stopped in Los Angeles, worked out a few times at Wild Card, and then Freddie said I could stay. I’ve been there ever since. Sparring there for a young fighter can’t get any better. Manny’s an unbelievable fighter and a great person. Freddie has gotten me to sit down more on my punches. I’ve always had power but, he’s brought it out of me, and I’m much more comfortable.
“I’m looking forward to being in New York City for the first time. I’ve wanted to fight there for a long time to show everybody what I’m capable of. I’m a great entertainer and love to entertain fans who’ve paid their hard earned money to come to my fights. I’ve always dreamed of fighting in Madison Square Garden and to do it in front of so many Irish fans is a great opportunity for me. I fought on the Irish Team with Andy Lee. He’s a good friend and a good guy. I knew of Wayne McCullough, everybody did back home, but I don’t know him. I said hello to him once at a stadium but I’m sure he doesn’t remember me. I’m looking forward to meeting him and honored to be fighting on the same card as Andy and Wayne.”
Scheduled to fight in 6-rounders on “Erin Go Brawl II” are Irish super featherweight champion Eddie “Pride of Tallaght” Hyland (11-1, 3 KOs), of Dublin; Philadelphia by way of Galway middleweight “Slick Fightin’ Irish” Simon O’Donnell (8-1, 5 KOs); Limerick light heavyweight Jamie Power (4-0, 2 KOs) versus Reggie “Concrete” LaCrete (4-0-2, 3 KOs), from Brooklyn; Jersey City super featherweight Danny “Little Mac” McDermott (7-1-1, 2 KOs).
Also on the card in 4-round matches are Massachusetts light welterweight Danny O’Connor (3-0, 1 KO), 2008 U.S. Olympic Team alternate; Brooklyn featherweight Sadam Ali (1-0, 1 KO), 2008 U.S. Olympian; former St. Xavier College star football player Tommy Brown, fighting out of Chicago, making his pro debut in the light middleweight division.
Irish Ropes president Eddie McLoughlin also announced that County Galway’s Sean Mannion (42-14-1, 14 KOs) will be honored at “Erin Go Brawl II” in honor of the 25th anniversary of his WBA light middleweight title fight at Madison Square Garden against the eventual champion Mike “The Bodysnatcher” McCallum.
Tickets, priced at $50.00, $75.00, $100.00, $150.00, $200.00, $300.00 and $400.00, are on sale at TicketMaster.com as well as Jack Demsey’s in Manhattan, Hilltop in Elmhurst, and the Heritage in Yonkers.
For more information call Irish Ropes Promotions (212.868.9543) or go on line to www.irishropespromotions.com.
Photo: Dean Byrne with his head trainer, Freddie Roach
Posted by News LI Editor · Filed Under Sports
Have a press release or local story you would like us to review? Let us know about it!
| You can Bookmark & Share this page by clicking here: |
|
More Long Island News
-
Long Island Exchange is the leading resource on Long Island New York for news and business. Find Long Island news, check local weather, real estate, classifieds, and auto dealer listings for Long Island.
News Comments for this Article
One Response to “Dean “Irish Lightning” Byrne Makes NYC Debut in “Erin Go Brawl II””
Got something to say? Be sure you've read and understand our (Terms of Service)
You may not post any unlawful, threatening, defamatory, obscene, pornographic or other material that would violate the law. All comments should be relevant to the topic and remain respectful of other authors and commenters. You are solely responsible for your own comments, the consequences of posting those comments, and the consequences of any reliance by you on the comments of others. More...
“Erin Go Brawl II” cancelled in NYC
NEW YORK (March 6, 2009) – Irish Ropes Promotions announced today that its scheduled March 16th “Erin Go Brawl II” pro boxing show at WaMu Theater in Madison Square Garden had been cancelled due to the poor economy in the United States and Ireland that adversely effected advance ticket sales.
2004 Irish Olympian Andy Lee (16-1, 13 KOs) was slated to fight 3-time world title challenger Antwun “Kid Dynamite” Echols (31-9-4, 27 KOs) in the main event, while 1992 Olympic silver medalist Wayne “Pocket Rocket” McCullough (27-7, 18 KOs), former WBC bantamweight champion, had been matched against Alex “El Diablo” Becerra (19-7, 9 KOs) in the 10 round co-feature.
“This was a very difficult decision to make but ticket sales were way off compared to two years ago when the economy was much better here and back in Ireland,” Irish Ropes Promotions president Eddie McLoughlin explained. “We apologize for any inconveniences, especially to all of the boxers who worked so hard to prepare for their fights.”
Tickets will be reimbursed in full at points of purchase.
- Posted by: News LI Editor