By his own admission, Eric Donovan has yet to be tested since turning professional four years and 12 fights ago.
But that is all about to change tonight in the most unlikely of circumstances and situations as the Kildare native takes on English prospect Zelfa Barrett at Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn's back garden in Essex.
The Covid crisis sent the sporting world into disarray and Hearn, one of the top promoters in world boxing, got creative and set up an entire boxing village in the ground of his sprawling Essex mansion to create a clever concept called Fight Camp.
Week three of the venture, and thanks to Donovan’s new manager, Mark Dunlop, the former Irish amateur champion has been thrown into the spotlight to take on one of the emerging stars from Hearn’s plethora of potential world champions.
Donovan’s late arrival to the paid ranks has been well documented and his assimilation into the professional game appeared seamless as he waltzed his way through his opening bouts and ended up live on national televison in March 2019 to secure the Irish title in his ninth fight.
But the stagnant state of Irish professional boxing put Donovan’s rise through the ranks on hold as fight nights in Dublin became too costly with a malignant shadow hanging over the sport throughout the capital.
Donovan would fight his next two bouts on the road before returning to these shores for win number 12 in Belfast last February, and soon after joined forces with the well-connected Dunlop, who also looks after world title hopeful James Tennyson.
Belfast native Tennyson has already appeared, and won in style, in the opening instalment of Fight Camp, and now it is Donovan’s chance to impress in what could be a life-changing event for the 2010 European bronze medallist.
Donovan is determined to grab his chance to impress in this IBF intercontinental title fight and has made a lot of friends this week, alongside trainer Kenneth Egan, speaking with confidence, clarity and bucket-loads of charm with the Sky Sports cameras following the fighter throughout the week.
In fact, you would hardly believe that Donovan is the away fighter in this one as he has enjoyed just as much, if not more, time in front of the camera as his opponent Barrett.
The odds, however, are stacked against Donovan in this one and all of Hearn’s fighters are expected to get through their first fight coming out of the Covid crisis, while there is also a step up in weight to consider for this bout.
Both fighters weighed in at the exact same weight 9st 3lb 10oz, just under the super featherweight limit of 130lb, but it will be interesting to see whether Barrett looks much bigger than Donovan when they step through the ropes tonight.
Donovan usually fights at 126lb and while it is only a four-pound increase, that can often prove decisive when it comes to the power match-up, especially with Barrett already looking big at this weight.
And there is no doubt that Barrett possesses all the armoury to trouble the Athy fighter as he is taller, with a longer reach, and is very capable of fighting from distance, with his left hooks to the body and uppercuts proving very effective in recent fights.
Donovan will need to be on the front foot in this one from the opening bell and look to disrupt the game-plan of Barrett by working on the inside, while also relying heavily on his boxing education to keep out of touble and counter the long, wielding shots.
The movement of Donovan can certainly cause Barrett problems as the Manchester man tends to appear off-balance on occasion, as he attempts to land big shots to live up to his nickname, Brown Flash.
And if Donovan can frustrate his opponent and nick some of those opening rounds, the character of Barrett will be severely tested, the longer the fight goes on.
Neither fighter has devastating punch power, yet both are capable of earning a knock-out victory in this one.
Should Barrett come out with real energy and aggression against the naturally smaller man and catch Donovan with some of his big looping efforts early on, it could prove a very difficult night for the Irish man.
However, with Egan in his corner and with years of boxing in the bank, you would imagine that Donovan is astute enough to work through those opening rounds without letting himself appear too open, while he will certainly have done his homework on Barrett and will have seen plenty of flaws to exploit.
Defence will be key for Donovan to allow his boxing ability to shine through and when he does get close to Barrett, real opportunities to punish should present with his opponent’s tall frame ideal for some damaging shots to the body.
Donovan is also a southpaw, which will disrupt Barrett and limit the effectiveness of his left hand, and it is notable that the English fighter's only defeat came against another unorthodox fighter, Ronnie Clark.
No crowds at the Essex venue should also prove helpful to Donovan as there will be a partial levelling of the playing field in that respect, while there is no doubt that Barrett will have been distracted throughout the buildup as to the attention that the away fighter is receiving.
Barrett may not thank promoter Hearn for this particular task on his first fight back after the coronavirus lockdown and having not stepped inside the ring since last October, however, should he come through the test, it will stand him in good stead going into future fights.
For Donovan, the opportunities are endless, and an odds-defying victory would see him catapulted into the world level conversation at featherweight and super featherweight, which would open doors to huge fights and potential world title eliminator bouts, with big names like Carl Frampton or Josh Warrington knocking around the division.
But when it comes to Eddie Hearn’s boxing nights, the emphasis is always about entertainment, and should this Donovan clash with Barrett live up to the expectation that has been building in recent weeks, then win, lose or draw, expect the Lilywhite Lightning to become a regular on the Matchroom circuit.
Follow Eric Donovan v Zelfa Barrett with RTE.ie's live tracker from around 8:30pm.
