Luke Keeler‘s long mooted clash with notable U.S. name Gabe Rosado [24(14)-12(4)-1] looks set to take place this summer in Ireland.
The Dublin middleweight reluctantly turned down an offer to face the two-time world title challenger in Philadelphia back in March, with the proposed fight taking place too soon after his return from a back injury.
Keeler [16(5)-2(1)-1] instead would decisively defeat Conrad Cummings a couple of weeks later to reclaim the WBO European rankings title and he now sits at #6 with the body.
Meanwhile, in front of his home fans on the aforementioned Philadelphia show, which also featured Katie Taylor and Jono Carroll, Rosado was defeated by Polish puncher Maciej Sulecki. ‘King Gabe’ dropped a points decision to the man who challenges WBO champion Demetrius Andrade this weekend but not before dropping him late and almost claiming a sensational win.
Rosado still remains relevant on the fringes of world level and a target for Keeler who may now get his wish, with talk that the fight will take place on the Mick Conlan v Vladimir Nikitin undercard in Belfast on Saturday August 3rd.
Keeler has hinted that he will feature on the Falls Park Féile show and it seems that advanced negotiations are underway with Rosado.
Reliable account ‘NoSparring’ would reveal the whispers on Twitter last night and this was immediately picked up by Rosado who retweeted and then clarified that there was “nothing official yet vs Luke Keeler, but he want that smoke let’s go.”
Word on the street is Gabriel Rosado is Ireland bound for a date with Luke Keeler in early August. Bombs away! #NoSparring #Boxing pic.twitter.com/S4Tm9c8lbK
— No Sparring (@NoSparring) June 24, 2019
Nothing official yet vs Luke Keeler, but he want that smoke let’s go#Ireland #Boxing @PeltzBoxing
— Gabriel Rosado (@KingGabRosado) June 25, 2019
#Ireland #Boxing @PeltzBoxingWhile Rosado’s record is patchy, it would no doubt be a major step up for the 32-year-old Keeler who is looking to build quickly up the rankings and towards major fights – even putting himself forward as a willing opponent for Andrade.
A win over 33-year-old Rosado, live on ESPN+ on a Top Rank card, would certainly build his profile and notoriety and certainly looks an attractive next step for the Ballyfermot puncher.
The biggest fight on the Féile undercard currently sees Fredo Meli take on German Olympian Araik Marutjan while there are also spots for Paddy Barnes, Sean McComb, Dee Sullivan, Sean Duffy, Callum Bradley, and Padraig McCrory – who saw a fight with Taylor McGoldrick fall through when the Tyrone man was stopped last week.
Derry super bantamweight Tyrone McCullagh also looks set to feature in a major contest while Lenadoon welter Paddy Gallagher, among many others, is keen to appear.