Emma Dolan: “I want to defend my British title and get back into position to fight for a world title again.”   

Emma Dolan: “I want to defend my British title and get back into position to fight for a world title again.”   

It’s been a period of reflection for Emma Dolan in the last few weeks. The long-awaited first world title opportunity had ended in disappointment and more. Most pundits expected Dolan to beat Irma Garcia and claim the IBF world super-flyweight title. But after a good opening round at the Olympia last month, Dolan was stopped in the third round. It was going so well. Until it wasn’t.

The 27-year-old was dropped twice in the second round, and again in the following round, and when her corner threw in the towel, her maiden world title challenge was over.        

“It’s a weird one,” Dolan told me over Zoom. “I was caught early. If I had gone in there and got beaten up for ten rounds, that would have hurt me more. I would have shown myself at that level, and I would have known I wouldn’t have been good enough. Not taking anything away from Irma, but my focus wasn’t as good as it could have been. I got caught with a shot early, and I didn’t get to show what I was really about. I didn’t get to dig in. My body gave up on me, really. I was willing mentally and really trying to do something, but every time she clipped me, my legs gave way. Unfortunately, I couldn’t do what I wanted to do.”

It was a finish that nobody saw coming. A distance fight was the pre-fight prediction. The manner in which it ended brought genuine shock in the media section in London. Dolan was seemingly still trying to process her first professional defeat as our conversation flowed.

“In hindsight, after watching it back, I should have just boxed her like I did in the first round,” Dolan said. “But I jumped in a little too quick. I got caught with that shot, and that was it, really. My legs didn’t recover. I couldn’t move away because my legs were not with me. It was the first time I had been on the canvas, and instinct just kicked in, and I set about her. I landed some good shots, but every time I got clipped, I was on my arse again. But I got back up, and I would have kept doing that all night.”

“It’s more frustrating than anything,” Dolan added. “I know I am at that level. I am not knocking her because she beat me, but I know I can beat her. I know it’s something I won’t get, but I know I can beat her. I know that at my best, I can beat any of them. It’s taught me a lot. I have learned from it in certain ways. I know when I am 100% on it, I am one of the best fighters at the weight.”

Trying to come to terms with how it had gone so disastrously wrong has been beyond difficult for Dolan. There are no excuses from her. Dolan has owned it. But the way her body failed her on the biggest stage to date could be linked to the scales. “I cut too much weight, I think. Not deliberately, probably due to stress. I made the weight fairly comfortably the day before. I normally put on six or seven pounds. But I didn’t put on anything. So that would have been a factor. But you can pick apart all these things, but I just wasn’t as focused on it as I should have been. It’s as simple as that. Boxing is a brutal sport. If you are not on it like you should be, you get found out.”

Dolan is already thinking about getting back in there. Another go at Garcia is the obvious aim. But Dolan knows that is extremely remote, at least in the short term. “Ideally, I want a rematch with Irma Garcia. But I am realistic, I know I am not going to get that. But for a personal thing, with or without a belt, I would like to fight her again.”

But Dolan has options elsewhere. The former Commonwealth champion still has her Lonsdale belt to defend, and there are two potential opponents ready and waiting for her. “I am still the British champion, so I would like to defend my belt later this year,” Dolan told me. “There are people for me to fight. You have got Shannon Ryan and Shannon Courtenay. I will fight anyone who fancies it.”

Shannon Ryan would appear to be the obvious next fight. Ryan, who is coming off a stunning second-round stoppage over Nicola Hopewell, only has one defeat on her record. To Emma Dolan. Ryan has talked previously about wanting revenge on the only fighter to beat her. But Dolan is unsure whether Ryan still wants another fight with her, but it is a fight very much of interest to her. “I have never said no to the rematch with Shannon Ryan. I have been offered that fight three times by Matchroom, and I have never said no to that fight. She wanted it when she thought I was going to be winning the IBF title. I don’t think she thinks she has any reason to fight me now. But I want that fight, but I can’t imagine her wanting that fight now.”

It can be difficult to interview a fighter after a defeat. Wisely, Emma Dolan has waited a few weeks before going on record with her thoughts. In the weeks that followed that defeat to Garcia, there would have been tears, and plenty of them. But time has only made Dolan want it more. The time for feeling sorry for herself is long gone. “I find it a bit cringy when people say it was a lesson for them. It’s not a lesson for me, it just fucks me right off.”

The disappointment is obvious. It still hurts. It should hurt. It’s a good sign. An indication that Dolan still wants it. In truth, she probably wants it more than ever now. “I want to get back in the gym, get training, and do what I do best,” a fiery Dolan said. “I want to get straight back on it. I want to defend my British title and get back into position to fight for a world title again.” 

Photo Credit: Mark Robinson/MVP