Kelly's technical expertise to be tested

BOXING / IBF flyweight title fight: The precedent in Irish boxing was set in 1995 when Wayne McCullough went to Nagoya, Japan and arrived back in Ireland with the WBC bantamweight belt.

Travelling to the Lion's den and taking the bone from the resident champion has always been fraught with danger for travelling fighters. Few slim-margin wins ever go the way of the challenger.

When Damaen Kelly steps into the ring against IBF flyweight champion Irene Pacheco on Saturday in Bogota, Columbia, the Belfast fighter will understand the extent of what he is being asked to do.

Pacheco, the highly-respected champion, is a tough fighter and in Bogota Kelly might wonder just exactly what he has to do to come away with a win.

Whatever that is it will have to be decisive.

The 30-year-old former undefeated European champion will face the Colombian in a fight which is being televised by the BBC, and it represents a chance to show how the technical expertise he has developed over the years can be used to earn a first serious world crown. He has held the less-regarded IBO and WBF titles.

Kelly was scheduled to fight early in the summer against another South American, Ncedo Cecane, but the bout was called off due to an administrative cock-up and now Pacheco represents an important opportunity in what is the twilight of Kelly's career. But the IBF champion also represents a huge challenge to the Irishman.

Pacheco's dominance is so complete in the division that he has found it difficult to find credible challengers to step up and fight him, which suggests that he has also gone through some periods of inactivity.

While Kelly has been inactive for the last 12 months, Pacheco has not been in the ring since November of last year.

Belfast's Turf Lodge southpaw fighter will go into the ring with a sizeable height disadvantage, but with Pacheco now 32-years-old, the Irishman will be fighting an opponent two years older than him.

What may hurt Kelly most, however, is the lack of a world-class punch that could floor the champion. While Kelly's technical ability is admired worldwide, he has frequently lacked the power to finish opponents, stopping just eight fighters in 19 career wins.

Gifted as he is Kelly also has a tendency to cut and if his tactics are to go the distance with Pacheco and win on a points decision, then never mind how the Bogota judges mark their cards, his blood issue may even be the deciding factor.