Sport

'We won't stop 'til we're at the top!' McKenna brothers Aaron and Stevie aiming high as Conor Quinn prepares for Belgium fight night

Aaron McKenna stopped 79-fight veteran Jordan Grannum last Friday night
Aaron McKenna stopped 79-fight veteran Jordan Grannum last Friday night Aaron McKenna stopped 79-fight veteran Jordan Grannum last Friday night

STEVIE McKenna was eight and younger brother Aaron six when they first pulled on a pair of gloves and began learning the basics of boxing from their dad Fergal.

Fifteen years on and the unbeaten fighting siblings from Smithborough, county Monaghan showcased their talent with knockout wins in England last Friday night.

“We’re a great team,” said Stevie (now 5-0).

“We work exceptionally hard, all of us. Daddy pushes us on and me and Aaron are a great help for each other. We spar each other, we run together, we do everything together so we’re always pushing each other on and that makes us better.

“Our dad has been with us the whole time, right from the very start so we have a lot to be thankful for. From the first day we walked into the gym we loved it, we fell in love with it.

“We have a gym at our house that my dad built when we were younger. We’ve got a full-size ring, treadmill, bags, strength-equipment… We’ve got everything there for us and we’re very fortunate that he did that for us.

“The dream always was to make it in the pros. We watched them all on TV – Manny Pacquaio and all the Irish legends as well. We want to be world champions and bring world titles back to Monaghan.

“We’ll not stop ’til we’re at the top.”

Aaron was particularly impressive in the way he went about dismantling 79-fight veteran Jordan Grannum. Grannum had never previously been dropped or stopped but that proud record looked in danger from the second the bell sounded.

Aaron’s footwork was pin-point and his punching with both hands was accurate and spiteful from the start. Grannum could not live with it.

“It was a very good performance because I hadn’t fought in a year,” he said.

“I was in against a guy who’d never been stopped or even by dropped in all of his fights and I was the first one to do it and stop him so I’m very happy with my performance.”

He had been due to fight in the USA in March but the show was cancelled and the LA-based trio flew back to Ireland and returned to their Smithborough home where they the spent lockdown training in the gym “at the back of the house”.

That training paid off and Aaron’s display on Friday night earned rave reviews from respected pundits, former world champions Richie Woodall and George Groves.

“It’s always great to fight close to home,” said Aaron.

“I got a lot of exposure on Channel 5, the messages and all the support I’ve been getting has been unbelievable.

“I was very glad to hear what the pundits were saying. They know their stuff and it was nice hearing things from people like that.

“It’s always nice to hear it but you can never let anything go to your head. You have to take each fight at a time and I always prepare for every fight like it’s a world title fight.”

Aaron is only 11 fights into his career but he makes no secret that he has his sights set on a world title shot and the target in his sights is WBO world champion Patrick Texiera (31-1).

“I wouldn’t be afraid to fight the world champion in the morning but you just have to keep fighting away and keep winning until you get up to that level in rankings,” he says.

“Next year I want to be as busy and active as possible and try and get as many fights as I can and then I’ll be ready to take on the Texiera who is also with Golden Boy.”

His brother Stevie fought like a man possessed on Friday night against teak tough Brummie MJ Hall. From the start he unloaded a barrage of hurtful shots off both hands and although Hall tried valiantly to ride out the storm, McKenna’s arm was raised before the end of the fifth.

“He was a tough guy, he took a lot of heavy shots,” said Stevie who moved to 5-0 (all stoppages).

“I wanted to go out and go for the knockout like I always do. He took some big shots, I don’t know how he took some of them! He was durable but it was good to get the rounds in and I was happy with the performance.”

Stevie is back in action on Friday on another Mick Hennessy bill in Redditch and he is certain there will be no ill-effects from last weekend’s exertions.

“I’m feeling really sharp for this one,” he said.

“I’m feeling even better for this one than I was last week. Every fight I want to keep stepping it up and getting better and better.”

CONOR Quinn will have his first contest for MHD Promotions on Saturday night (December 19) when he faces the durable Nicaraguan super-flyweight Daniel Mendoza (11-10) in Brussels.

Quinn a seven-time All-Ireland amateur champion from boy to elite level, traded in his vest in last year leaving behind a glittering amateur career that saw him represent Ireland and European and World level for a promotional contract in Brisbane, Australia last year.

Following a successful debut in Australia in December last year the 20-year-old found himself travelling abroad to Bangkok, Thailand, where he registered his second knockout victory before the Covid-19 Pandemic put the brakes on his progress.

After 10 months of training hard without any sign of a contest, he returned to Belfast last week to link up with Belfast manager Mark Dunlop who has built an impressive stable of fighters which now includes world lightweight title contender James Tennyson, EBU cruiserweight champion Tommy McCarthy, British lightweight title challenger Paul Hyland jnr and super-featherweight talent Eric Donovan.

“Conor is an incredible talent, very dedicated and he clearly has a lot of ambition having taken himself out of his family environment and comfort zone in pursuit of his dream,” said Dunlop.

Quinn will train in Belfast with Dee Walsh and Peter Graham and is looking forward to getting back in the ring on Saturday night and kicking on to a busy and successful 2021.

“Mark does an amazing job with his fighters,” he said.

“I've been to many of his shows growing up and am delighted to be part of his team and look forward to being guided to the very top by him, I know he will get me the opportunities I dream of. It’s up to me to take them and win them in style.”