Reece Mould v Martin McDonagh: Doncaster boxer relishing pressure on Canon Medical Arena bout in Sheffield

The 28-year-old from Doncaster has momentum behind him once again, over two years on from a loss that put the brakes on his ascent.

He came up against Leigh Wood at Wembley Arena in 2021, falling victim to a brutal ninth-round knockout.

It was a fight he had shown promise in early on, before he was floored on three occasions and eventually defeated.

Fast forward to 2023 and Wood is preoccupied with Mould’s stablemate Josh Warrington, while Mould has a Sheffield showdown of his own to prepare for.

On Friday (October 6), he will make his first defence of his WBA Continental lightweight championship, topping a star-studded bill at the brand new Canon Medical Arena.

Earlier this year, Mould admitted he would probably walk away from the sport if he lost to Hamed Ghaz.

Speaking to the Doncaster Free Press, he said: "If I didn’t win I would probably call it a day. It is a must-win fight, but I like that pressure on myself.”

Ahead of his upcoming battle with Martin McDonagh, Mould has declared the fight a “must-win”.

Pressure is evidently something the Doncaster fighter thrives on. Being the unashamedly ambitious individual he is, Mould sees the accomplished McDonagh as someone he absolutely must dispatch of.

Speaking to The Yorkshire Post, he said: “It is a must-win fight. If I’m to go the place where me and my team expect us to go, we have to come through people like Martin and that’s no disrespect to Martin.

"I don’t believe he’s at that level they’re saying I’m at. We need to win this to go to the places where we need to be.

“I had a look back, I’ve been boxing 18 years, fighting 18 years. I look back from when I was 11 years old to where I am now, and I’ve only ever lost once in my own corner.

"That was in my village. I returned that win the week after.

"The proof is in the pudding that I box better when I have that bit of pressure, and my fans just behind me.”

Preparations for the fight, in Mould’s own words, have been “perfect”.

He has spent time in the United States, sparring with stablemate Maxi Hughes.

Mould explained: “It’s going perfect. We fought last time on GBM [Sports] show, and then we rolled out of that and I knew I was sparring Maxi for his camp. I went out to America when he fought out there and I sparred him out in America. I came back and realised we were fighting.

"We’ve just rolled straight through really. I’ve just followed it through, it hasn't been a weight loss camp or anything like that. We were already there in the first place, so it’s been perfect.”

Mould is someone who could now be considered experienced, with 19 bouts across seven years on his CV.

McDonagh is the same age as Mould with the experience of 14 fights, two of which have ended in defeats.

Mould said: “He was a top-class amateur, he’s got very good boxing ability. We’re expecting him to be a tough fighter.

"This is the fight we asked for. I didn’t want to just go in there and have an easy fight. We wanted a good challenge and we’ve got one.

"If I win this, I’ll go into the top 10 for the WBA. Whether I fight for a European title next, or whatever, we’re going to get some big opportunities when we come through this.”

There is added significance this weekend for Mould, as he makes his first appearance at the Canon Medical Arena in Sheffield.

Located at the heart of the Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park, it is a brand new carbon-neutral built arena designed to cater for a variety of sports.

Headlining an event at such a venue is something Mould takes pride in, especially considering it enables him to put the hometown he is so proud of on the map.

He said: “I’m proud to be part of Doncaster, and proud to be from Woodlands. I know you get a lot of people saying things about Doncaster but I’m proud of where I’m from.

"I’m just glad that I can headline these events. I’m a Doncaster lad, headlining these events. I’m very excited, it looks something else. I’ve headlined quite a few venues in my career now but nothing of this size. I’m excited.”

The evening promises to be a thrilling one, with the hotly-anticipated clash between Emma Dolan and Nicola Hopewell also featuring on the bill.

Fans will also be seeing a vast array of prodigies in action, including Naphtali Nembhard, Nohmaan Hussain and Will Cawley.

Tickets for ‘Clash On The Court’ are available to purchase via Skiddle. The event will also be streamed live on YouTube channel talkSPORT Boxing.