Popular South Boston fighter "Ireland's" John Duddy to fight on Pacquiao undercard

“Ireland’s” John Duddy will fight “Murder Man” Michael Medina on the March 13 undercard of the welterweight title fight between Manny Pacquiao and Joshua Clottey at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington.

Duddy (27-1, 17 KOs), a former IBA World middleweight champion who was born in the city of Derry in Northern Ireland, suffered his first loss as a professional to Billy Lyell (21-8, 4 KOs) by split decision in April 2009.

Duddy successfully rebounded from his lone defeat and trumped Michi Munoz (20-1-2, 13 KOs) in his comeback bout by unanimous decision this past October.

Duddy, 30, has long been a very popular boxer in “The Hub,” particularly in South Boston, due to its large working class population of Irish-Americans.

Medina (23-1-2, 18 KOs) is a relatively talented Mexican pugilist and, at only 23, his future as a prizefighter seems bright.

Many boxing analysts harshly criticized Duddy after his disappointing showing against the average Lyell.

ESPN.com boxing writer Dan Rafael stated that Duddy was “exposed” after he was vanquished by Lyell.

Rafael went on to claim that Duddy’s impressive ring resume was simply a mirage that was in actuality a “carefully manufactured record” amassed versus inferior opponents.

Medina is a worthy adversary and he will prove to both Duddy and fight fans alike that he is a tough competitor.

Nevertheless, expect “Ireland’s” John Duddy to thwart the “Murder Man” by stoppage before the battle goes to the scorecards.