His opponent will be heavy-handed hopeful Juan Bedolla Orozco (14-4-2, 11KOs) of Zamora, Mexico. The fight is scheduled for eight rounds or less in the lightweight division.
The fighting pride of Red Deer, Alberta, O’Connell is currently ranked #3 in the Canada by Boxrec.com, behind a pair of recent world title challengers. With a win against Orozco, O’Connell’s stock will no doubt rise, putting him in the running for an international title shot in the near future. He’s certainly been busy so far in 2016, punching his way to three knockout victories in as many fights, including an impressive KO3 stoppage of Hungarian Olympian Norbert Kalucza (12-4-0, 7KOs) in September.
Orozco, otherwise known as “El Tornado,” has been one of the busiest fighters of 2016, appearing in ten fights in the last eleven months, including four fights that went eight rounds or further. No stranger to travel, Orozco journeyed to Malaysia in April to face Uzbek welterweight champion Qudratillo Abduqaxorov (8-0-0, 5KOs) for the vacant World Boxing Foundation International and World Professional Boxing Federation Youth World Championships, dropping a ten round unanimous decision.
With a win over O’Connell, “El Tornado” would be on the fast track for another crack at international laurels.
Tickets are available now via www.eventbrite.ca.
