Editor’s note: This article was originally published on DAZN.com.
Ireland’s Jason Quigley is hoping his army of Irish fans can give him an extra boost against WBO middleweight titleholder Demetrius Andrade on Friday night.
The fight is taking place at the SNHU Arena in Manchester, New Hampshire, which is home territory for Andrade.
Quigley is counting on an Irish invasion to help swing the fight in his favor in his first attempt to win a 160-pound title.
“There’s nothing like the Irish fans, and I cannot really imagine what it’s going to be like come fight night,” Quigley said ahead of the clash, which is being broadcast live on DAZN.
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“We all know how loud and proud they are, and that’s giving me more excitement. And these are the types of things as well that can get fighters through a difficult period of a fight.
“When you are in the ring and you are hurt, you go down, something is not going to plan, when you hear the crowd roaring you on, that can give you the extra lift and percentage to get you over the line.”
While Quigley is both nervous and excited ahead of this career defining contest, the 30-year-old is focused on the task at hand.
“In the build-up to the fight it’s about controlling emotions, the nervous energy,” he said. “You have the natural excitement inside of course, but I have a job to do on November 19, to get in there and take care of business.
“That’s been the mindset for me, I have prepared as hard for this fight as any other that I’ve had.”
Andrade vs. Quigley is the main event on a deep card, which features four world title fights. That includes Murdojon Akhamdaliev’s defenes of his WBA and IBF junior featherweight titles against Jose Velasquez.