Callum Walsh: ‘I Don’t Expect Any Fight To Be Easy’

The junior middleweight division is buzzing with talent, and 23-year-old ‘King’ Callum Walsh (10-0, 8 KOs) is right in the middle of it all. If the name sounds familiar, it’s because his promoter, Tom Loeffler, with 360 Promotions, has worked tirelessly to get his name out there in various markets. Walsh is becoming a household name in non-traditional outlets and is matching that notoriety with entertaining performances in the ring.

Loeffler has a deal with UFC Fight Pass to stream his events, so it was only natural that Dana White got involved in Walsh’s career. Since the UFC falls under the TKO umbrella like WWE, it was no surprise to see Walsh get pointed out on a Monday Raw telecast on the USA network while in Anaheim, CA. It’s all part of the plan to make Walsh the next big Irish star; by the looks of it, he is closer than people might expect.

During a media workout at Freddie Roach’s Wild Card Gym in Los Angeles, CA, Walsh was asked about the attention he is getting outside of boxing, which is helping him become a crossover star. Walsh told FightsATW, “It comes down to promotion, and that’s Tom Loeffler. It makes sense, and if you stick to just boxing, you get boxing fans. If you are everywhere, you have fans all over the place, and it’s been working. Between Tom Loeffler and Dana White, they have the master plan, and I’m just following it. It’s worked so far.”

Loeffler has kept Walsh busy, taking him from California to Boston and then NYC for St. Patrick’s Day. The crowd at the Theater inside Madison Square Garden keeps getting bigger and bigger for the Walsh fights on the Irish holiday. 360 Promotions will look to make Walsh headlining an event at MSG an annual thing with hopes of getting one of his fights eventually inside the big room. New Yorkers aren’t easily impressed, but given the attendance for his fights there, they seem to be on to something.

“New York is like a little Ireland. I went back there twice, and more people were at the second fight. I think they appreciated that I came in there and took a tough fight. I’m looking forward to going back there. I feel like it’s one step closer to Ireland.”

Walsh’s path hasn’t been easy, as he’s faced some tough veteran fighters. Tomorrow’s fight on UFC Fight Pass against Carlos Ortiz isn’t any easier. Ortiz has shared the ring with guys like Alexis Rocha and Blair Cobbs. Ortiz’s 14 victories have all been knockouts, so Walsh has his hands full. Walsh feels he is ready for this moment and will continue to produce entertaining fights.

“I’m ranked number 10 by the WBC, so fights aren’t going to be easy,” said Walsh. “Everyone is showing up to win, especially when they come to fight me. I don’t expect any fight to be easy, especially this one. He is a fighter with 14 wins and 14 knockouts, so he is going to be dangerous. I’m feeling good you know. I don’t want the easy fights, and people still talk sh* about my opponents.”

Walsh will step on the scale later today to make Friday’s fight official and he wants fans to know on thing: “Until I win that world title, I haven’t done anything yet.” That’s important to note, as fans like to put a label someone because of the attention they are getting, but Walsh makes his thoughts clear to indicate his focus. Walsh has all the tools to become a future world champion, so hopefully, his notoriety doesn’t surpass the speed of his progression, as that can lead to a bad night in the ring. Looking at who’s behind him though, the probability of that happening is low. Walsh is part of the division’s future, so fans should get familiar with him.

Why should fans tune into UFC Fight Pass on Friday night? Walsh kept it simple and said, “I show up to fight. I don’t take easy fights.” Let’s see how Walsh performs with this latest test that looks to push him to his limits.

Abraham Gonzalez

Abraham Gonzalez is the founder of FightsATW. His journalistic work has been published and used across several platforms to include online, network TV and promotional companies. He is an American Public University alumnus and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA). Abraham was the Managing Editor for NYFights, Big Fight Weekend, contributed to FanSidedMMA and ProBoxTV.

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