Emma Dolan vs. Nicola Hopewell: Risk & Reward

Emma Dolan vs. Nicola Hopewell: Risk & Reward

Friday night’s Commonwealth super-flyweight title fight on the latest GBM Sports promoted show is everything that the sport should be. Two unbeaten fighters going into a fight where victory is anything but guaranteed just has to be applauded. Both fighters deserve immense credit for taking the fight.

Emma Dolan could have gone by a different and far safer route for her first defence of the title that she won in March. Nicola Hopewell could have made her excuses and continued the early stages of her professional career by beating the usual brigade of unambitious imports. Dolan and Hopewell have both rolled the dice and while the loser will undoubtedly still have plenty to offer, the winner could find herself in some very big fights. And quickly. A gamble that could pay off very handsomely for the winner of their bout in Sheffield on Friday night.

Dolan is slightly the more experienced of the two unbeaten fighters. She turned professional a year earlier, and with five fights to her name and the Commonwealth title in hand, Dolan can quite justifiably be considered the slight betting favourite. Dolan will probably view her greater experience as a professional as a major reason why the decision to make a voluntary defence against the Worksop fighter was made. The viewpoint of possibly catching Hopewell at the right time before her talents have been allowed to fully develop. Pre-fight words of “I’ll be too much for her,” could be a sign that Dolan knows something we don’t. Or equally, a sign of overconfidence and underestimating her opponent.

Despite her more than decent amateur background, Hopewell still sits in the realms of just how good is she? Since turning professional in 2022, Hopewell has three wins to her name. There have been signs of real potential mixed in with the rawness of her second fight against Buchra El Quaissi. There were mistakes, and Hopewell made it far more difficult for herself than it needed to be. Make no mistake, she can’t afford a night like that against Dolan. But when she returned with lessons learned earlier this year against Ivanka Ivanova, Hopewell looked a completely different fighter. That performance offered real hope.

But the reigning Commonwealth champion will be an entirely different proposition. But that can be said about Hopewell also. Both will be in much deeper than they have been previously. Nobody can say with any degree of certainty who will win.

When I’ve been asked about this fight, my reply is a simple one, “It’s a proper fight.” And the type of fight that we don’t see enough of. There is risk, but the rewards more than justify that risk.

You could argue that it might have come too soon for Hopewell. But it is a fight she has long wanted. It should have happened earlier this year, but when it didn’t materialise earlier in the summer, Hopewell didn’t turn her attention elsewhere. A sign of confidence and perhaps an indication that she really fancies it. Dolan, of course, sees it differently. Two good fighters who are risking their unbeaten records when they didn’t have to, and where others wouldn’t have done.

Dolan and Hopewell will likely serve up the fight of the night. A proper fight indeed.

Photo Credit: GBM Sports