Limerick fighter Paddy Donovan will travel to Australia to reignite his world title dreams by taking on a former champion Liam Paro in January.
The bout will be a final eliminator for the IBF World Welterweight title, the belt Donovan fought for against Lewis Crocker earlier this year.
It will take place on the undercard of Nikita Tszyu vs Michael Zerafa in Brisbane.
Paro (29) is a formidable opponent for Donovan.
He was world champion at light welterweight and boasts an impressive record of 26 victories from 27 fights, including claiming the IBF title against Subriel Matías last year.
His spell as a champion proved short-lived, losing to impressive American Richardson Hitchins, before opting to move up a weight division.
Paro is managed by Meath's Brian Peters, best known for working with Katie Taylor and Bernard Dunne.
Donovan fought Crocker twice this year, suffering a controversial disqualification in the original bout.
The rematch was for the vacant IBF world title which Belfast man Crocker won by split decision last September.
Confirmation of the fight was announced by Australian promoter No Limit Boxing this morning with the winner set to be mandatory for Crocker’s belt.
While Crocker may defend his belt in the coming months, the victor in Brisbane will likely challenge for the belt later in 2026, regardless of who is the titleholder.
