Dean Byrne: Freddie Roach and Johnny Lewis said I'd be world champion

In his last fight, Byrne came in at three days' notice to box Carson Jones in December after Lee Purdy pulled out with a virus, and the Dublin welterweight came very close to upsetting the hard-as-nails American.

BoxRec News' Danny Wright was ringside for the fight:

"Byrne reacted well to Jones's early forward march, taking the first two rounds by evading his pressure and making himself difficult to hit.

As the pace slowed, Jones started to look stronger, but at times in the fight was made to look ordinary as Byrne side stepped his punches and landed scoring shots to his body. As in his previous fight with Kell Brook, Jones's engine warmed up as his opponents was fading.

A cut opened up below Byrne's left eye in the fifth, and the American was perhaps in the ascendancy at this stage, but this was an eight rounder. Byrne mustered enough to put in a great effort in the closing round, and looked a much classier fighter than Jones. Referee Ian John Lewis scored the fight 76-76 each. BoxRec News scored it 77-75 for Byrne."

"I thought I did more than enough to beat Carson Jones," said Byrne. "I didn't get the recognition I deserved for that performance and now I've lost momentum.

"I'm at world level and just need a couple of fights to sharpen up, then I will be ready to go for Brook, Jones and Lee Purdy." 

After boxing in Australia as an amateur, Byrne was invited by turn professional by trainer Johnny Lewis (Jeff Fenech, Kostya Tszyu, Billy Dib). He jumped at the chance, won Australian titles, then relocated to the US to work with legendary hall of famer Freddie Roach.

"They both said I would be a world champion," said Byrne, "and they can't both be wrong. They are Hall-of-Fame trainers, they know what they are talking about."

"Mickey (Helliet) can see my potential and he knows a busy fighter is a happy fighter," said the 28 year-old, who now trains at Miguel's Gym in Brixton under Paul Dougboe.

"I owe my performance against Jones to him," said Byrne.

Topping the July 5 Camden Centre bill entitled 'The Quest for Honour and Glory', Ahmet 'Pattycake' Patterson (9-0) meets Phil 'The Phil Gill Experience' Gill (14-1-2) for the vacant Southern Area welterweight title. Also making appearances will be Hove light middleweight prospect Lloyd Ellett (9-0), Peckham Pexican Johnny Garton (8-0) and Watford middleweight Elliott Matthews (7-0-1), who gets a chance to finish what he started against Latvian Raimonds Sniedze (8-5) after a bad cut turned their first meeting into a technical draw.

Tickets are available from 07534-004677.

Pictured above: Dean Byrne boxes Kevin McCauley in September 2012 by Bernard Miller for BoxRec News.  

Read the original article on news.boxrec.com