Fans of Michael Conlan may have to wait until Saint Patrick’s Day to see their fighter in the ring again. It was hoped the 14-0 featherweight would meet the 21-2 Isaac Dogboe on December 5th at London’s Royal Albert Hall on the undercard of Tyson’s Fury’s next match. Unfortunately however, the 28 year old Conlan hurt himself while training earlier this week, injuring his ankle. The popular former Olympian will reportedly be out of the ring for several months. The planned fight with former WBO champion Dogboe was to be a title eliminator.
“Absolutely devastated,” Conlan tweeted, “to announce I will no longer be fighting December 5th due to rupturing my ATFL during a training session on Wednesday, back home now recovering. Doc said I’ll be out for 8-12 weeks but I’ll be back sooner, just watch! #ChampionMindset #TheConlanRevolution” Conlan later wrote on Twitter about getting a new PlayStation console. “Now im out injured,” he joked, “I need to fill my time with something productive.” The fighter also put two pictures of himself on social media. One shows him on crutches, the other features his swollen ankle.
Conlan shot to international fame when he gave judges two extended middle fingers at the 2016 Olympic Games. Shortly after, he signed with Bob Arum’s Top Rank promotions in the United States and began his career. There’s little doubt the Belfast native has been heavily promoted as he’s worked his way up the sport’s ladder (For instance, MMA star Conor McGregor appeared at Conlan’s 2017 professional debut in Madison Square Garden). Although Conlan hasn’t attained a major title, as fellow 2016 Olympian Shakur Stevenson has, Dogboe was considered a serious challenge.
For Dogboe is not only a former champion, his only two losses have been to the highly regarded Emmanuel Navarrete. What’s more, his last fight was a stoppage this past summer of Chris Avalos. On top of all that, Dogboe is younger than Conlan (though at 28, Conlan is nowhere near over the hill). With that in mind, there’s no information available as to whether or not Dogboe will fight on the December 5th card against another opponent. Indeed, Fury himself, who is scheduled to headline the card, has yet to announce who his opponent will be
No matter who appears on the December 5th card, however, it’s clear the event has lost one of its attractions, as Conlan is one of the better known names in the contemporary fight game.