From Olympic failure to world title dreams, Mayo’s proud son is rising again

It took shadow boxing in the centre of MacHale Park for Ray Moylette to finally visualise himself bringing a world title fight to the hallowed GAA ground.

"My dream would be to come back and bring big-time boxing back to Mayo," Ray asserted sitting beside the ring that is the thumping heart in the centre of St. Anne's boxing club, Westport. The Connacht fight factory is where he was forged and as coach Martin Brennan attests, Ray Moylette put the humble gym on the international map. Adjacent to the dressing room entrance, a sign that reads, 'No acting the bollox.' The hunger in his voice confirmed the 8-0 hot prospect wasn't deliberately disobeying this commandment when he spoke of his desire to bring a world championship to the home of Mayo GAA.

"It's the biggest stadium in Mayo and it holds a close place in a lot of people's hearts through Mayo football. So, I'd love to be able to bring a world title fight or defend a title there at some stage. That's part of the dream."

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Familiar territory

The last time Ray was in MacHale Park for an athletic performance, he was lacing up boots rather than gloves. He was captaining his parish of Islandeady to Gaelic football glory. But, despite all his sporting successes, he is second to former Taoiseach Enda Kenny as the most famous Islandeady club man.

"It was an u21 county final with my own club Islandeady. I actually captained the team that time. I think it was to a second or third division title, but it didn't matter. We got the silverware in the end and I said a speech up on the steps. I'd love to do that again someday if I could."

In 2011, he was drafted into the High Performance Centre for the 2012 London Olympic Games. It was around this time when he was forced to cease playing GAA. Sustaining an injury on the field would have resulted in his contract being terminated and his funding being cut. It was the social aspect that initially attracted him to football. His family and friends were all part of a team he describes as the 'backbone of the community.' Given his skill set, he considers giving it up to pursue a career in boxing a no-brainer. He is still a valued member of the club, albeit, as part of the backroom staff.

"At the minute, I'm training the Islandeady senior team just for the strength and fitness. I'm still connected, but unfortunately, I'm not in a position to play anymore. I still want to help out and get stuck in with them. That's the role they've given me. I know I'm gone to Boston, I'm in and out, but they still value me and my support. To be part of that is something special."

Sibling rivalry

Training began two decades ago at the gym. His brother Richard's achievements inside the ring lit a competitive fire in his belly. Once he saw the praise his own flesh and blood was receiving, he was driven to best him.

"He won an Irish title when I was a young child and there was a big deal made out of it. I said, 'Wow, I have to win two titles now. I want to be better than him.' That bit of competition. So growing up I always wanted to win two titles to surpass him and to fight for Ireland. He never got the chance to fight for his country."

A Junior World Championship title, a European senior League title, several Irish titles and an undefeated professional career later, it's pretty clear that Ray has far exceeded the initial goals he set.

"I've won six All-Irelands now and lost probably over six as well - I lost out on a lot of opportunities there. And I fought for my country over 50 times, so I definitely passed him out. I've succeeded in my goal. That's where the boxing came out of. Just being close to my brother. He done it and I just wanted to chase in his footsteps."

St. Anne's

St. Anne's celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2018. Martin Brennan hopes that before the year's end, there will be at least three new trophies added to the cabinet to bring the total up to 100. The first man to bring an Irish title to St Anne's was Peter Mullen. In 1972, he fought the great Larry Holmes in an amateur bout. In Mullen's words, 'Holmes did all the boxing.' He jokingly stated that appearing on the Joe Duffy radio show following Ray's European championship win was his claim to fame. Fighting a future heavyweight world champion who beat Muhammad Ali was surely a close second. Ray confessed that as an elite athlete, he is a 'psychopath'. He eats, breathes and sleeps the fight game. While he leaves everything at home to go train at Dublin's Celtic Warrior gym, his loved ones are always there to pick up the pieces. Mullen was one of the key supportive figures when pursuing a career as a prizefighter became a reality for Ray.

"In 2008, I was part of the High Performance team just on a Saturday, because I was still in school at the time. Peter Mullen used to give me €50 and that was to buy a train ticket and to get a bit of food up there. I don't even know if it would get you a train ticket now the way times have changed. I couldn't have done it without their help."

Unleashing the pig

According to Brennan, Ray is comprised of two contrasting personalities. Outside the ring, he's 'soft as pudding', but inside it, he's a pig.

"He knows when I say that word to him what that means. This ferociousness comes out inside him. This will to win. He hates losing. He calls it losing is a disease, and it is, you know. When he steps into the ring, the pig comes out in him. That's the way it has to be, that's a boxer. It's a rotten sport. It's a tough, hard selfish sport. The successful ones are lovely guys outside, but they're animals inside the ring."

Ray backs up these claims. On the street, he will have a smile washed across his face and is eager to talk to any passers-by. However, once there's an adversary standing in the opposite corner who is trying to render him unconscious, a metamorphosis occurs.

"I can't do it and I can't show it outside the ring. I can't even do it sparring. It's like a switch that happens when the fight starts. I've probably lost more spars than I've won over the years. I've often lost fights that I should have won because they were easy fights and I couldn't get the switch turned on. The hard fights, the bigger fights, the bigger opponents, the harder opponents - the tougher it gets, the better I get. The switch turns on and I can unleash the animal."

Venezuela

Ray wasn't content with just surpassing his brother's achievements. He wanted more than bragging rights within the family. He set his sights on the Holy Grail of amateur boxing. Unfortunately, he fell short of his goal of representing Ireland at the Olympic games. In Brennan's eyes, he should be an Olympian, but he 'just didn't have the luck'. Ray came agonisingly close to qualifying for Rio 2016. He needed to win two fights in Venezuela to qualify for the games, but dropping a unanimous decision to Armenia's Hovhannes Backrov ended that dream at the final hurdle. That's 'the big one' Brennan always looks back on. Although, Ray's response to that adversity, filled him with hope.

"I can definitely say that my most disappointing fight was when he lost in Venezuela that we knew the Olympics was gone. It was a defining time because I thought maybe Ray could be lost to boxing. He might just throw it there. I knew marriage was on the horizon and he might have walked away, but when he came to me and said, 'Here, I'm really interested in giving the pro game.' Of course we have totally supported that and he has proved that he's just fell into it. It just suits him down to the ground."

It is clear that Ray feels he didn't fulfil his potential as an amateur. He's aiming to right that wrong in the pro ranks by reaching the zenith.

"I'm training here over 20 years, I don't have a lot to show for it even though I have a world title and a European title, I feel I've left an awful lot behind me. I missed out on the Olympic Games, which was very hard for me because I chased that for so long. I haven't done myself justice over the number of years. So, I want to be able to walk down the town and I want to say, 'That fella, he reached his target.' My target at the minute now is to become a world champion."

"Entitled to dream"

Ray finds it hard to take compliments. When he wins, he often goes into hiding, which he admitted isn't 'ideal'. He's working at it. He faces former MMA fighter Matt Doherty on Saturday 31 March at the Marina Bay Sportsplex in Quincy, Massachusetts live on ESPN and on Eir Sport (3 am) in Ireland. Should his hand get raised, he has vowed not to avoid his loyal sport offering their congratulations. https://www.instagram.com/p/BgGXhrSlL2S/?hl=en&taken-by=raymoylette As the fights keep getting bigger, so will the support. According to Brennan, Ray's success story has already inspired athletes all over his hometown.

"They want to be senior league champions, they want to represent their country because he has set the tone way up there. It might never happen again, but at least we know, we're entitled to dream now like that because Ray has done that."

Ever the realist, Ray is fully aware that he still has some way to go before he brings a world championship to Mayo. A scrap with Doherty is next on the agenda. Although the Boston native has been chirping in the media, Ray is willing to be amicable once the respect is earned through battle.

"If he wants, I'll buy him a pint after the fight, but until then, we're enemies."

For penance and reflection, Ray climbs Croagh Patrick as close to a fight as he possibly can. The mountain holds a very special place in his heart. The church at its base is where he proposed to his wife Sharon. The stables beside the grotto are Croagh Patrick Stables, run by coach Brennan. After the arduous climb to the summit, he gazes across Clew Bay, draws energy from the mountains and dares to dream atop his beloved Mayo. The athletes perfecting their craft in the clubs and gyms dotted around the townlands below are entitled to dream too, because of Ray.