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Irish Times

Kelsey Leonard: I'm definitely capable of becoming boxing world champion

If you've ever had even a passing interest in boxing , you'll have seen videos of world champions doing mittwork. In most of these the boxer effortlessly tip-taps away, while the coach does most of the movement . The fighter simply rotates his fists into position and a heavy clap rings around the gym. It's the showy way of hitting pads, impressing only the most surface level viewers, and it gave the whole practice a bad name for a while. What's going on inside the ring in Kildare's UNIT 3 gym is proper padwork. Everything here is based in real scenarios, and even with a body protector and mitts, coach Niall Barrett is taking a serious beating from the two boxers. READ MORE One at a time, they're in with a combination, then pulling back as Barrett fires warning shots, then tearing back into their coach, before pivoting and disappearing out of his sight. Gary Cully, the 6ft 2ins lightweight, who seems to defy science by making that weight, is a familiar face to Irish boxing fans, having fought on major cards in Ireland and the UK. Soon enough, they'll know the other boxer too, as long as things go according to plan. Eight-time Irish amateur champion Kelsey Leonard makes no bones about her goals: 'I think I'm definitely capable of becoming world champion. If I could become multiple-time world champion, that would be the ultimate goal'. It's a lofty ambition for the 25-year-old who makes her professional debut on August 2nd in Belfast, but it's not out of reach. Plus, with Katie Taylor nearing the end of her career, it would be a perfect time to make a splash. 'It would be great to be able to continue that legacy of Irish female fighters,' Leonard explains. 'She's always been a huge inspiration to me.' She followed in Taylor's footsteps last year, when she won the Haringey Box Cup, Europe's largest amateur boxing competition held in London every year. It bodes well for transitioning into the paid ranks, but professional boxing isn't a straightforward way to earn a living. 'It's quite hard financially, especially starting off. Roughly, it costs between four and five grand to fight each time. I could just get a full-time job and I wouldn't have to worry about it. I just know what I'm capable of.' [ All-Irish world title fight confirmed for Windsor Park in Belfast Opens in new window ] Kelsey Leonard and Michaela Walsh face each other in the 2024 IABA National Elite Championships Women's 57kg Finals. Photograph: INPHO/ Laszlo Geczo There's definitely a set up at UNIT 3 for her to do just that. Originally operating out of a single unit, with a commercial gym to the front and a small boxing ring to the back, the gym has expanded massively in the past couple of years. Now, the boxing side of operations takes place in a much bigger unit, with a full-scale ring standing alongside the old three-quarter-size model. Add in a recovery centre (hot tub, cold plunge, sauna) next door and you're looking at a pretty ideal modern facility. 'It's mental. It just used to be the small unit, which, at the time, felt like it was huge. There was so much going on and even that was top class. 'Now, we have the place next door, we have the recovery unit. We do boxing, strength and conditioning, core sessions, it's just everything you need in one spot.' The gym is hidden away within a warren of industrial estates in Naas . With 30 minutes left of the morning session, Barrett is standing in the centre of the ring with six or seven pairs of boxers crammed in. He is directing an infighting drill, where they jostle and shove and punch at vanishingly short range. The din of feet stomping on canvas is only interrupted when he shouts at them to stop throwing hard punches to the head. On the one hand it's an odd thing for a boxing coach to say. But Barrett is a trainer who is willing to address the massive risks his fighters take when they get in the ring. 'He's a very big advocate for brain health,' says Leonard. 'He wants you to do well in boxing, but then he wants you to still have all your brain cells intact, have a family afterwards. Kelsey Leonard: 'I think that might be why I loved it so much, because I was good at it straight away'. Photograph: Babs Daly 'Fighters naturally are going to be brave and they just want to fight. And we're not going to think about that as much as your coach should. A lot of the damage comes from excessive sparring - growing up, I never really would have thought about that. We do a lot of technical, slow training, you're not getting loads of impact to the head.' [ Katie Taylor erases all the question marks with her third win over Amanda Serrano Opens in new window ] With her debut fast approaching, training is now made to fit the requirements of the fight, which will be four two-minute rounds. It's a change from Leonard's amateur career, where each session is three minutes. 'My training has to be tailored a little bit now because now I'm [doing] two-minute rounds. So it's short sprints, really high intensity cardio. I do like the two-minute rounds because there's a lot of action. But the three-minute rounds, you can set things up, you can think a little and use your technical ability.' Her passion for boxing was kindled in the ring at just nine-years-old, after she got a flier in school for her local club in the Curragh. She says that her parents were surprisingly approving of her new hobby, although they probably didn't expect her to make a career of it. She had natural ability from the word 'go' and decided it was the sport for her. 'I think that might be why I loved it so much, because I was good at it straight away. The minute I went in, I was like, 'oh, I want to fight soon'. I always kind of underestimated myself, but when I won my first Irish title and I was representing my country, I was like 'I'm probably okay at this.'' She will face winless journeywoman Kira Carter in her debut fight on an undercard in Girdwood Community Hub in Belfast today (Saturday, August 2nd). Colm Murphy of Belfast battles England's Luke Pearson in the main event, but Leonard will surely catch a few eyes before then.