Paddy Donovan Withdraws From IBF Eliminator vs Liam Paro

Liam Paro was already in shape. Not camp shape. Real shape. The kind that only comes when you know the night matters and the other guy is dangerous. Then the call came. Paddy Donovan was out. Illness, they said. The IBF eliminator was gone.

This was not a stay-busy bout. This was a hard checkpoint in a division that does not wait around. Paro had done the work. He brought in sparring that pushed his lungs and tested his patience. The timing was tight. The weight was right.

Paro said: “I’m gutted the fight is off. I’ve put in a full camp, flown world level sparring over to prepare and done everything right. I was ready to put on a show in Brisbane. When it’s taken away this close, of course it stings.”

“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t frustrated. I was ready to go and he’s pulled out, simple as that. I was prepared for the toughest version of Paddy Donovan, and now he’s gone.”

“To be honest, it feels like he never wanted the smoke. Took forever to sign the contract and now pulls out with the flu. I’ve battled through training camps before with sickness, including for the Matias world title but fighter’s fight.”

A camp built for pressure, not rounds

Paro came into this with purpose. His last few fights showed a man settling into his pace, learning how to control range instead of chasing moments. He had been sharpening the parts that matter when judges are watching. Feet planted. Punches finished. No wasted energy.

Donovan was supposed to test that. Southpaw rhythm. Volume. A fighter who can steal rounds when you lose focus. Not a world beater, but a problem if you switch off. That is why the fight mattered. It was not about headlines.

“I was coming in fit, confident, and ready to make a statement, and maybe he saw that. He was just going to be a statistic on my record anyways. As frustrating as it is, that’s boxing we stay in the gym grinding and I know god always has a greater plan.” said Paro.

Donovan’s pullout leaves more questions than answers. Fighters get sick. But timing matters in this sport. So does pattern. Donovan’s activity has never been steady. He has gone quiet before. This does not help his standing in a division where opportunities are rationed and patience runs thin.

What this does to the picture

For Paro, this is not just a delay. It burns leverage. An eliminator is a clean path. Miss it and the division turns messy again. Rankings reshuffle. Mandatories get delayed. Promoters start circling other names.

He will still be near the front of the line. His recent form earned that. But staying sharp without a date is its own fight. Gyms are not built for waiting.

For Donovan, the damage is quieter but real. Pulling out of a world-level opportunity puts a question mark next to reliability. That sticks with matchmakers longer than people admit.

Paro will need a replacement or a quick turnaround. A stay-busy fight makes sense only if it keeps him ranked. Anything else risks wasting another camp. The IBF clock does not stop for anyone.

“My focus hasn’t changed one bit…I’m coming for Lewis Crocker and the world title next. I will be a two-time and two division champion. This is just a delay, not the destination. I’ll reset, stay sharp, and be ready for the world title next. I should not and cannot be denied.”