Michael McKinson has been tipped to win major titles by his promoter Lee Eaton, of MTK Global.
The welterweight is currently ranked No.8 by the WBO and will likely face a fighter in the sanctioning body’s Top 10 to help him scale the ratings and a step closer to challenging for that world title, currently held by Terence Crawford.
McKinson (19-0, 2 KOs) was victorious on Sunday night as he picked up a unanimous decision against the previously unbeaten Martin Harkin, being credited with three knockdowns in the process.
Eaton was highly impressed by the 26-year-old’s performance.
“I thought he boxed unreal,” Eaton told Boxing Social. “It was the best I’ve seen him box. He’s improving all the time and I really believe he will go on to win major titles. It’s a hard division for him to win a world title as there a lot of world class opponents in the division.”
The slick southpaw has been on a good run of form having defeated Harkin, Luis Alberto Veron, Evgeny Pavko, Ryan Kelly and Sammy McNess, in the last two years, all by unanimous decision.
McKinson announced on Twitter that he is only interested in taking on the cream of the domestic crop next, with Chris Kongo, Conor Benn, Chris Jenkins, Josh Kelly and Amir Khan all on his hit-list. If he is unable to secure a match up with any of the aforementioned, then he has expressed his desire to progress against international opposition.
While many of the top names at 147lbs currently have contests scheduled, Eaton is keen to bolster McKinson’s world ranking.
“Our options are thin with Michael,” he said. “It has been very hard matching him. His last five opponents have a combined record of 74-3-2, so he’s been fighting proper fights and he ain’t scared to fight anybody!
“Next, I think we will look for a Top 10 fighter with the WBO, to move him up them rankings. He already beat Luis Alberto Veron when he was No.6 with the WBO, so a Top 10 fighter is the target. All the domestic boys don’t seem to fancy it or are tied up in other fights.”
Main image: MTK Global.