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Agyarko keen to emulate Holy Trinity club-mates

Yahoo Sports

Caoimhin Agyarko is proud of his former Holy Trinity amateur club-mates Anthony Cacace and Lewis Crocker going on to win professional world titles and he hopes to secure his shot when taking on Brandon Adams in a final eliminator for the IBF light-middleweight title in Last Vegas on Saturday.

Agyarko takes on Brandon Adams in a final eliminator for the IBF world light-middleweight title in Las Vegas on Saturday [Getty Images] When Anthony Cacace claimed the WBA super-featherweight title at the expense of Jazza Dickens last month, he completed a one-two of reigning world champions who graduated from the Holy Trinity club. Cacace previously won and then relinquished the IBF title before returning to the top in March, while Lewis Crocker was crowned IBF welterweight world champion in Belfast last year with a points win over Paddy Donovan. The production line shows no signs of slowing down at the west Belfast club with Caoimhin Agayrko setting his sights on top honours as he prepares to take on Brandon Adams in a final eliminator for the IBF light-middleweight title at The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas this Saturday [Sunday 04:00 BST].

As an amateur, Agyarko etched his name into the club's rich history with Irish and Ulster Elite titles, but after hanging up the vest in 2018, professional glory has dominated his ambitions. The 29-year-old, perfect through his previous 18 contests, watched with pride as his former club-mates realised their dream and now it's his turn as he rolls the dice in Vegas with a shot at world champion Josh Kelly the prize for the winner. "What Anto Cacace has done is inspirational and that is a credit to him and the boys in the gym: Michael [Hawkins Jr], Barry [O'Neill], Ruairi [Dalton] and Micky [Hawkins] Sr," Agyarko told BBC Sport NI, referencing Cacace's coaching team at Holy Trinity.

"He's a two-time world champion and in the history books, so that inspires someone like me who has followed him and trained alongside him as an amateur. "It's unbelievable to see how far he has come by having the right mentality, biding his time and backing himself. He's had to do it the hard way and I am doing it the hard way too, so I can take inspiration from that.

"Lewis [Crocker] too - a great fighter and I was on the undercard of him and Donovan [rematch for the world title]. I was so happy for him to win the world title, so I want to be the next one from Holy Trinity to win a world title but I have to get past Brandon Adams first. " Anthony Cacace and Lewis Crocker are current world professional champions who graduated from the Holy Trinity club in Belfast [Getty Images] Hawkins Jr and O'Neill remain by his side with the former in Las Vegas as part of his coaching team which is led by Liverpool's Stephen Smith who challenged for the IBF super-featherweight title almost 10 years to the day.

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