Conor Wallace fulfils his dream of fighting on St Patrick’s Day as he takes on Jack Gipp

Light heavyweight Conor Wallace (12-1, 9KOs) will finally live out his dream of fighting on St Patrick’s Day when he takes on Jack Gipp (7-0, 3KOs) at the Fortitude Music Hall in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia on March 17 live on DAZN.

The 27-year-old Irish born, Australian-based southpaw was slated to box Mat Sheehan (10-2, 7KOs) in an all-lefty battle on the same date last year before fate intervened.

A hand injury suffered in his rematch against the rugged Leit Leti (17-2, 13KOs) four months earlier required surgery and pushed the fight back to July.

Entering the bout with two good mitts for the first time in his career, Wallaces blasted out Sheehan in a little over two minutes on Tasman Fighters’ debut show on DAZN.

Call it the luck of the Irish.

“They felt sure they were coming to spoil the party in Brisbane, but we had sparred very well and it’s a lot different having no pain in your hands,” Wallace said to The Ring about the fight.

“I had constantly been in pain and I think that was obviously a good one for us to really showcase where we were at. You can say you’re doing this in sparring and you’re doing that, but there’s no world title – or any titles – won in sparring.

“To do what I did under the bright lights live on DAZN was massive and it really gave me that kickstart because everyone really did think it was a 50-50 fight.

“People back home got to watch it on such a good platform as well, not like a shitty live stream or something. It was unbelievable to be given a chance by Mick Francis and Fran Bradford of Tasman Fighters, I was very grateful.”

Now ranked by all four major sanctioning bodies, Wallace will get his chance to make it three in a row on DAZN when he faces former amateur star Gipp on the biggest day of the Irish calendar.

The lanky puncher, who is listed at over 6-foot-3 by BoxRec, believes he will have the measure of the 25-year-old from the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria.

“I do believe it is a step up for him, but that’s good,” Wallace said. “We know he had a good amateur career himself. He’s going to be young and hungry and he’s coming for the [regional] belt, so he’s got no pressure on him or anything.

“The pressure is on me but I’m training hard, I’m training like the underdog myself. Every fight from here for me is like a world title fight because if I lose, I slip down the rankings. I worked too hard my whole life to get to where I am to let some guy from Melbourne come up here and take it off me.

“I’m looking forward to St Patrick’s Day. It’s going to be a massive day and it’s a big day for me and all of the Irish. The Mat Sheehan fight was supposed to be on St Patrick’s Day last year but due to the hand surgery I had after the Leti rematch it was pushed back, so to get to do it this year, I’m really excited and I do believe it will be the most amazing one yet.”

He added: “We will be ready. He has definitely never fought anyone like myself. Not being cocky or big-headed, but I think he knows that himself.

“I know I’m not overlooking Jack Gipp or anything, but I need to do away with him to get to where I want to be going.”

Despite the weight of expectations, Wallace says he doesn’t feel any additional pressure.

“Not really. I love it, you know what I mean?” said Wallace, who cites fellow portsiders Joe Calzaghe and Andy Lee as influences on his career.

“On the days you don’t feel like training, you just think about what the crowd is going to be like and the buzz that will be there. I’ll get excited walking into the stadium and seeing all the people sitting in the Irish bar with the Conor Wallace shirts on. That’s what really drives me and motivates me. It’s another step towards that world title shot.”

Wallace’s start in boxing is a story as old as time. Bullied in primary school, his mum took him to the gym to teach him how to protect himself. He never thought he would be a boxer, he just wanted to gain that little bit of confidence to stand up for himself.

“I started boxing when I was nine, just about to turn 10, and you can’t box competitively until you’re 11, which is when you get your book and stuff,” Wallace reflected. “So I had a few fights and ended up winning the national title in my first year of boxing and from then it kicked on… I started getting on the national team and from there as my experience grew and I kept winning and winning, the hungrier I got.”

Amateur success brought with it trips abroad to represent his nation, broadening Wallace’s horizons and giving him a global perspective of the sport. After 175 amateur contests he took a phone call from Steve Deller, the owner and head trainer at Fortitude Boxing Club in Brisbane, Australia, half a world away.

The timing was fortuitous. He was considering turning pro at the time.

“Steve Deller contacted me in was 2018,” Wallace recalled. “He had a great connection with Irish fighters before, including Dennis Hogan. When I saw the set up at Fortitude I knew it was for me, and the weather was a big thing in my decision making too.”

There is a long-standing bond between Australia and Ireland with many of the convicts sent out on the First Fleet coming from Irish descent. In his five-and-a-half year pro career Wallace, who was born in Newry in Northern Ireland, has been able to grow his fanbase from Irish expats to the broader Australian boxing market.

“If you watch any of my fights and the crowds I bring to my fights, they’re getting bigger and bigger all the time. It’s almost like home for me here now,” Wallace said.

“If you’ve watched me on TV or seen me live, the crowds get bigger and bigger every time. And I love that, the big nights and the big fights. That’s why you do it.”

While some boxers are comfortable relying on their natural talent, Wallace sees himself as a student of the game.

“I’m a great believer in that,” he explained. “The day you stop learning is the day you need to pack it in. You can always pick up something from someone.

“I’m always watching fights, looking for different things I can pick up. If you can add something to your game and make yourself that 1% better, it’s a bonus. Especially at the level I’m at now. The small things can make a big difference.”

Wallace draws inspiration from his promotional stablemate Jai Opetaia (24-0, 19KOs), who famously defeated Mairis Briedis (28-2, 20KOs) on points in July 2022 to claim The Ring cruiserweight championship despite suffering two fractures to his jaw.

“It’s great to be in the same stable as Jai and I’m pretty friendly with him as well,” Wallace said. “He’s a good lad and we get on very well. If we see each other we always have a chat and communicate by text message here and there.

“To do what he’s done, it really makes it believable. What he’s done for himself, it shows that it actually can be done. Just the work rate he has and everything, the drive to want to be there on those big cards in Saudi Arabia and stuff, how well he’s done for himself and the adversity he’s come through. We use him as an example.”

If Wallace does manage to land a shot at the winner of The Ring magazine world title fight between punching machine Artur Beterbiev (20-0, 20KOs) and slickster Dmitry Bivol (22-0, 11KOs) in Saudi Arabia on June 1, he will be more than ready for the challenge. And he might need to draw on that inspiration from fellow southpaw Opetaia, but that is something he says he is more than ready for.

“You’re remembered for the people you fight, not the people you didn’t fight,” Wallace said.

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