Ambitious Spike O'Sullivan's boxing mission isn't over yet

SPIKE O'Sullivan would love to manage fighters after he hangs up his gloves, though for now, his focus is on a belt.

The 35-year-old Cork light-middleweight hasn't yet given up his dream of bringing a world title back to Leeside and insists that mission has yet to be completed.

The Mahon orthodox is eyeing up a world title tilt with Brazil's Patrick Teixeira in America and reckons he has the power and experience to dethrone the Sao Paulo southpaw.

O'Sullivan's manager and coach Paschal Collins is in talks with Teixeira's team and the fight, if it does go ahead, could take place next month in Las Vegas.

Teixeira, the WBO titlist, hasn't commented on the bout directly yet but both he and O'Sullivan are promoted by Oscar De La Hoya's Golden Boy.

"I think I could really give Patrick Teixeira a run for his money. I'm a better fighter now than I ever was and I'm more experienced," said O'Sullivan.

Spike is coming off a defeat to Jaime Munguia in San Antonio, Texas in January. The loss was the fourth of his 34-bout career.

However, Munguia got away with a lot of illegal punches in that bout which ended in an 11th round stoppage to the Mexican who was docked a point for a low blow early in the fight.

"I wish he didn't hit me with so many low blows. By the end of the fight, I was basically fighting with one leg because of all the low shots," said O'Sullivan, who won a lot of plaudits for his gutsy display in Texas.

"I would honestly love to manage fighters. I think I would do a much better job at that than training. I'm not looking forward to that side of life just yet," he added. 

"I've been boxing for a long time, and my mission has yet to be completed."

In December 2017, he knocked out former middleweight prospect Antoine Douglas in the seventh round of their scheduled 10-round contest and Douglas hasn't fought since being battered into submission by the Cork man.

"That was probably the biggest victory of my career. I beat him, and I beat him up bad to the point that he didn't want to fight anymore. He hasn't laced up a pair of gloves since that night. I've ended the careers of multiple fighters," O'Sullivan recalled.

But the hard-punching Leesider admits that he has some regrets about the way his career has panned out over the last number of years.

"My biggest regret was pursuing my dream of becoming a world champion as a middleweight," he said.

"I've had nine bouts as a junior middleweight, and I wish I stayed at 154-pounds. The opportunities, however, were at 160, and unfortunately for me, I faced a lot of excellent fighters and bigger men."