McIntyre: I will be British champion

JOEL McINTYRE reflected on his big-fight setback and vowed: I will be British champion.
Joel McIntyre Picture: Neil MarshallJoel McIntyre Picture: Neil Marshall
Joel McIntyre Picture: Neil Marshall

The Leigh Park light-heavyweight has promised he’ll bounce back after suffering a devastating English title loss to Liam Conroy.

McIntyre was stopped in the second round by the man from Cumbria in a shock defeat in London.

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It’s an outcome made all the more disappointing with the 29-year-old on the verge of some big fights.

McIntyre admitted he’s considered walking away from the sport after his record dropped to 16-2.

But some soul-searching with his team has led to the talent choosing to battle on in his quest for glory.

McIntyre said: ‘The next day after the fight I’d had enough and wanted to quit, but I’ve been away and spoken with my team.

‘We had a meal and we’ve all spoken about our roles.

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‘I think we all came away from that feeling a lot better about things and a lot clearer about the path moving forward.

‘I just think I was mentally exhausted.

‘Physically, I was in brilliant shape and couldn’t have been better prepared. But mentally I was gone.

‘It was an accumulation of everything which has been going on.

‘There were the fights which fell through and things getting changed at the last minute.

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‘I kept going through all of that. There was a holiday away which ended up turning into a training camp.

‘Boxing can be hard. Everything about living with it can be. I just think that maybe took its toll in the end.

‘Now I just want to take some time off. I just want to take a couple of months to live a normal life.

‘I’m not finished, though, believe me. I want to get back out on a TV show hopefully at the end of the year. Or have a show in Portsmouth.

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‘People can write me off. That’s fine. But I will be British champion – believe me.’

McIntyre had no complaints with the loss to Conroy after getting caught in the first round and stopped in the second. The defeat means talk of boxing on the Anthony Joshua undercard in Cardiff next month and a British title shot are firmly on the backburner.

McIntyre added: ‘Perhaps I started to believe some of the things I was hearing. Maybe I listened to that too much. There was talk about what was happening further on and sub-consciously I may have been looking at.

‘I didn’t really know Conroy or anything about him. But I always like being the underdog and I know how that motivates you. I went rushing in like a mad man and I got caught. I’ve got no complaints.

‘If you go out in the rain you’ll get wet and I went running in with my hands down. I won’t make that mistake again.’