Eddie Hearn is excited about the September 13 Rematch between Paddy Donovan and Lewis Crocker in Windsor Park, Belfast, Northernland. Except for the all-Irish angle for the fight, the vacant IBF Welterweight title will be at stake.
(Credit: Mark Robinson/Matchroom)
Eddie’s “crazy” fighting vision
Matchroom promoter Hearn expects a stamp of interest from fighters who want to fight Crocker-Donovan winner to win the IBF title of 147 pounds. He believes that these fighters will target the winner:
– Ryan Garcia
– Devin Haney
– Theofimo Lopez
– Conor Benn
It is difficult to present one of the guys interested in the fight against Crocker (14-1, 11 COs) or Donovan (21-0, 11 COs) for the IBF belt. There is no value for the fight other than capturing the IBF title.
Lewis and Paddy are considered to be fighters at the household level placed by Hearn by Hearn in the IBF’s 147 pound ranking without fighting the world-class fighters. In addition, the dough that fights Theofimo, Benn, Haney and Ryan against Crocker-Donovan winner would be minor compared to what they got.
Ibf belt’s big draw
‘The first All-Irish fight around the World Championships. That is in itself history. If you win this battle, who can you fight? Conor Benn, Ryan Garcia, Devin Haney, Theofimo Lopez, Shakur Stevenson, and they will all look at the winner of this battle. The bumpy ground About the Lewis Crocker against Paddy Donovan 2 Clash on September 13.
It sounds like a distorted pipe dream For Hearn, think that the big names Crocker or Donovan wants to fight for the IBF title. The belts are secondary when fighters come to the level of popularity that Ryan, Haney, Theofimo and Benn receive.
Realistic opponents prospects
Karen Chukhadzhian or Raul Curiel is a more realistic option for Crocker-Donovan 2 winner. These are not big names and will probably beat Crocker or Donovan with ease, but at least it would give them the chance to fight a decent opponent at the world level for a change. So far, the two Irish fighters have never fought anyone in the top -15 against welter weight. They were moved to their top spots with a smart fit, which is pathetic if you think about it.
Crazy Talk, Big Night
“You have the chance to become world champion here, create history, but also to be in fighting for an astronomical amount of money,” Hearn said of the potential for the winner of the Crocker vs. Donovan 2 fight to rake in the dough. ‘You have a rematch before 20,000 on Windsor Park for the Welterweight World Title. It’s crazy. Therefore, this struggle is called ‘days like this’ because you will not forget days like this. Wait until you see how it is here on September 13. Even when (Carl) Frampton fought here. It’s crazy.
“He has to be better, because Paddy was the better man at night to the mistake,” Hearn says about Crocker who needs to improve in the rematch.
Last updated on 07/28/2025
