Michael Conlan might be approaching the closing phase of his career, but the Irishman’s fierce desire to win a world title has not waned in the slightest.
Stoppage defeats to Leigh Wood and Luis Alberto Lopez in 2022 and 2023, respectively, denied him what many believed was almost a foregone conclusion.
He did, after all, enter the professional game in 2017 with a serious point to prove, having been dealt a truly egregious defeat against Vladimir Nikitin at the Rio Olympics.
Almost a decade down the line, though, Conlan is yet to realise his ultimate ambition, but believes a third stab at world honours will arrive soon enough.
In the meantime, the 34-year-old must remain in the win column against Kevin Walsh, who he is gearing up to face this Friday at Belfast’s SSE Arena.
Speaking with Boxing News, Conlan said he has been preparing for this opportunity since the end of last year, mostly training away from home.
“I’ve been training for this fight from mid-December, albeit with a holiday over Christmas. But I still trained while I was away.
“I think it says an awful lot about my dedication to boxing. If I wanted to be lazy and half-a**ed, and was only in it for the money, I could be at home training with random coaches.
“But I’m really enjoying it here in Sheffield with Grant Smith. I feel like I’m still learning and improving, even though I’ve been boxing for 27 years. You don’t stop learning this game.”
Regarding his next opponent, Conlan knows he has faced tougher opposition – and will certainly do so if he fights for another world title – but there is equally a sense that, at this stage in his career, he can simply not afford to take his eye off the ball.
“It’s a dangerous fight, because [Walsh] is rather unknown. He’s got a winning record, looks like he punches hard and loves to trade.
“If you lose to him, people are going to laugh at you. But who cares? It’s a fight that pushes my ranking up and gets me in a position to fight for the WBC world title.
“So that’s why I took him. It could be a banana skin, but I’ll make sure it’s not.”
The WBC featherweight title clearly appeals to Conlan, more so than a potential rematch with Wood, who the Belfast man believes looked “very old” in his unanimous decision victory over Josh Warrington last month.
Someone who is only just entering his prime, on the other hand, is Bruce Carrington, who claimed his green and gold belt with an emphatic ninth-round finish over Carlos Castro in January.
“I think Bruce is a very good fighter – very talented, very skilful, very explosive, has power and has a good boxing IQ. It’s a tough fight, but one I believe I can win.
“It would be nice [to rematch Wood] at some stage, but my sole focus now is winning a world title.
“After that, who knows? Maybe I’ll have a swansong against Leigh if he’s still around at that stage.”
Whether he eventually rematches Wood, it is difficult to say, but right now, Conlan’s mind is firmly focused on a possible shot at Carrington.
But even then, will the crafty technician be truly satisfied with his story if it does not include a world title?
“I’ve thought about this question a lot. Have I done what I wanted to do in pro boxing? If I don’t win a world title then no, I haven’t.
“Will I feel it’s been a waste of time? No, because it’s given my family a better life. But will I feel like I’ve underachieved? Yeah, definitely.”
In reality, Conlan has crafted a career that most could only dream of, yet time will tell as to whether he walks away from the sport with all boxes ticked.
