Emma Dolan vs. Shannon Ryan Preview

Emma Dolan vs. Shannon Ryan Preview

By Alex Springer

Emma Dolan defends her Commonwealth super-flyweight title against Shannon
Ryan on the undercard of another big domestic showdown between Tyler Denny and Felix Cash in Birmingham on Saturday night live on DAZN. Dolan and Ryan will also trade blows for the inaugural British super-flyweight title.

Dolan, 6-0, won the Commonwealth title by beating Halima Vunjabei by unanimous
decision in March 2023 and defended the title successfully against Nicola Hopewell in October last year. The Hopewell fight had garnered attention on social media beforehand as Hopewell is backed by the popular Australian former world champion Ebanie Bridges. The fight was also aired live on Talksport’s YouTube channel.

“Not loads to be fair, but everything’s moving in the right direction,” Dolan said when I asked if she had made any major changes since the fight with Hopewell.

“Get through this fight on Saturday night, and we’ll be in a great position then.” Further words from Thursday’s Press Conference that show Dolan is only focused on the here and now.

“I don’t mind being the underdog,” Dolan told FightPost. “I train in the gym with David Avanesyan, who’s been the away fighter in nearly every one of his fights, and he upsets the odds nine times out of ten. I don’t mind having that mentality at all. I’m ready to get in there and take that British title home. I’m not here with a violin or anything like that, but I’m beating people, and I don’t get the recognition for it for whatever reason. Different styles make different fights, and I believe my style is all wrong for Shannon, and I’ll be taking that British title home on Saturday night.”

Dolan is confident of victory but she knows her opponent is more than capable and shouldn’t be overlooked.

“I’m not arrogant enough to think she can’t win. If I don’t do what I need to do, she can get the win. But I know I’m gonna do everything that I need to do, ten times over, and she won’t get a look in.”

Ryan arrived in boxing having spent time elsewhere in the combat sports world. Limitations in the world of Kickboxing and Taekwondo brought her to the Noble Art she told me at Thursday’s Press Conference.

“I was training for the Tokyo Olympics with Team GB, but that fell through, so I wanted
to find another sport that would allow me to have a career, and be a fighter, and the
next best thing for me was boxing.”

Shannon turned pro in 2022 and has racked up a record of 7-0. This will be Ryan’s
first major title shot, but she doesn’t seem phased by the task at hand.  

“I think she’s average,” Ryan says of her opponent. “Nothing that she does is really alarming for me, and I’m the smarter boxer of the both of us. The fight with Nicola was average, Nicola got close to her, and if Nicola can do that, then I can do that even better.”

Dolan has the height advantage, works behind a solid jab, and also does good work
to the body. Dolan will need to utilise the jab to try and keep Ryan at bay. Ryan has fast hands, throws stinging punches, and can box on the front and back foot. She has also shown her toughness after sustaining a nasty cut in her last fight via a head clash, which she told me made her ‘feel like a warrior’. Ryan is a heavy favourite with the bookies, but her opponent is determined to spoil the party and finally get the recognition she feels she deserves.

Photo Credit: Mark Robinson/Matchroom Boxing