Boxing News has learned that the 34-year-old Coyle will meet American Vito Mielnicki Jr. in a 10-round, 160-pound bout scheduled to open a tripleheader ESPN will air February 14 from Madison Square Garden’s Theater in New York. Coyle-Mielnicki is part of the Denys Berinchyk-Keyshawn Davis undercard that night.
Coyle (21-0, 9 KOs), a native of Derry, Northern Ireland, has been matched moderately since he made his pro debut in October 2016 in Tampa, Florida. The Pinellas Park, Florida resident most recently outpointed England’s Kyle Lomotey (12-3, 2 KOs) in their eight-rounder August 3 at Oakwell Stadium in Barnsley, England.
In Mielnicki, Coyle will encounter a 22-year-old, once-beaten boxer for whom promoter Top Rank Inc. has high expectations in 2025 and beyond. Coyle is ranked third among the WBA’s middleweight contenders for champion Erislandy Lara’s title, whereas the WBA ranks Mielnicki, who will make his middleweight debut, fifth in its super welterweight ratings.
Mielnicki (20-1, 12 KOs), of Roseland, New Jersey, has won 12 fights in a row since unheralded Philadelphian James Martin (then 6-2) upset him by majority decision in an eight-rounder that took place in April 2021 at Shrine Auditorium & Expo Hall in Los Angeles.
Mielnicki, who was 18 when Martin beat him, attempted to avenge what remains his lone loss in his subsequent bout, but Martin came in 4½ pounds over the contracted weight limit of 147 pounds for their rematch. Once Martin blew weight, Mielnicki stopped 11th-hour replacement Noah Kidd (then 6-3-2) in the second round of their July 2021 bout at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
Top Rank executives and matchmakers hoped to eventually match Mielnicki against unbeaten junior middleweight contender Xander Zayas (20-0, 12 KOs). The 22-year-old Zayas, of Sunrise, Florida, is scheduled to square off against Germany’s Slawa Spomer (20-0, 11 KOs) in the 10-round co-feature before Norfolk’s Davis (12-0, 8 KOs, 1 NC) challenges Ukraine’s Berinchyk (19-0, 9 KOs) for the WBO lightweight title in the 12-round main event February 14.
Mielnicki’s move up to middleweight, necessitated by the 6-foot-1 fighter’s difficulty squeezing down to the junior middleweight limit of 154 pounds, puts him, temporarily at least, in the weight class six pounds above where Zayas competes.
Respected trainer Ronnie Shields helped Mielnicki improve since Shields began working with him in 2023. Mielnicki’s last performance wasn’t impressive, however. His handlers expected Mielnicki to knock out light-punching Italian Khalil El Harraz (16-6-1, 8 KOs), but they went the 10-round distance in an unremarkable bout Mielnicki won by majority decision (100-90, 98-92, 95-95) on September 27 at The Theater.
