[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"header-nav":3,"footer-nav":29,"article-mckenna-claims-ibf-middleweight-title-dublin-domination":82,"category-counts-nav":99,"related-mckenna-claims-ibf-middleweight-title-dublin-domination":109},[4,8,11,14,17,20,23,26],{"label":5,"to":6,"exact":7},"Home","\u002F",true,{"label":9,"to":10},"World Cup","\u002Fworldcup",{"label":12,"to":13},"Standings","\u002Fstandings",{"label":15,"to":16},"Football","\u002Fcategory\u002Ffootball",{"label":18,"to":19},"Basketball","\u002Fcategory\u002Fbasketball",{"label":21,"to":22},"Tennis","\u002Fcategory\u002Ftennis",{"label":24,"to":25},"F1","\u002Fcategory\u002Ff1",{"label":27,"to":28},"Long Reads","\u002Fcategory\u002Flong-reads",{"brand":30,"columns":32,"tagline":80,"copyright":81},{"description":31},"In-depth sports journalism covering football, basketball, tennis, F1, and beyond. Daily analysis, long reads, and expert opinion.",[33,51,59],{"heading":34,"links":35},"Leagues",[36,39,42,45,48],{"label":37,"to":38},"Premier League","\u002Ftag\u002Fpremier-league",{"label":40,"to":41},"La Liga","\u002Ftag\u002Fla-liga",{"label":43,"to":44},"NBA","\u002Ftag\u002Fnba",{"label":46,"to":47},"Formula 1","\u002Ftag\u002Fformula-1",{"label":49,"to":50},"Champions League","\u002Ftag\u002Fchampions-league",{"heading":52,"links":53},"Content",[54,56,57],{"label":55,"to":16},"Analysis",{"label":27,"to":28},{"label":58,"to":16},"Data & Stats",{"heading":60,"links":61},"Company",[62,65,68,71,74,77],{"label":63,"to":64},"Terms of Service","\u002Fservice",{"label":66,"to":67},"Privacy Policy","\u002Fprivacy",{"label":69,"to":70},"Editorial Policy","\u002Feditorial",{"label":72,"to":73},"Contact Us","\u002Fcontact",{"label":75,"to":76},"About Us","\u002Fabout",{"label":78,"to":79},"Website Disclaimer","\u002Fdisclaimer","Built for the love of sport","© SportPulse. All rights reserved.",{"title":83,"slug":84,"category":85,"badge":86,"author":87,"excerpt":88,"date":89,"readTime":90,"image":91,"imageAlt":83,"tags":92,"body":97,"_path":98},"McKenna Dominates Oliha to Claim IBF Middleweight Crown in Dublin Homecoming","mckenna-claims-ibf-middleweight-title-dublin-domination","long-reads","Feature","Marcus Wright","Aaron McKenna delivered a masterclass on Irish soil to dethrone Etinosa Oliha and claim the IBF middleweight title in his long-awaited homecoming.","2026-08-09 10:03:08","1 min read","\u002Fimages\u002Farticles\u002Fmckenna-claims-ibf-middleweight-title-dublin-domination.webp",[93,94,95,96],"Boxing","IBF","Middleweight","Dublin","## McKenna Takes the IBF Belt in Dublin\n\n**Aaron McKenna** beat **Etinusa Oliha** to win the **IBF world middleweight title** in Dublin on Saturday night. It was his first professional fight on Irish soil. He has campaigned across the UK and Europe for years; the homecoming delivered him a world title.\n\n**Oliha** is a durable, high-output operator who drags opponents into uncomfortable exchanges. McKenna worked behind a sharp jab, timed clean combinations and nullified that engine across the rounds. The win was built on fundamentals, not single-shot fireworks. He broke Oliha down with sustained accuracy and footwork that cut off the ring methodically.\n\nThe crowd roared through every clean combination. McKenna's corner kept instructions measured between rounds, refusing to let the occasion inflate the tactical plan. When the final bell confirmed the result, McKenna dropped to his knees in the centre of the ring.\n\n## What Happens Next at 160lbs\n\nThe **IBF middleweight title** moves at a moment when the division is fragmented across multiple sanctioning bodies. McKenna now holds positioning leverage for unification bouts against the other belt holders at **160lbs**. His promotional team will weigh the commercial value of a Dublin defence against the competitive need to face the division's established names.\n\nIrish boxing adds another world champion to its roster. The immediate question is whether McKenna defends on home soil again or pursues the bigger names on the American and British circuits. Either route now runs through him.","\u002Farticles\u002Fmckenna-claims-ibf-middleweight-title-dublin-domination",[100,101,102,103,104,105,106,107,85,108],"analysis","basketball","cricket","f1","football","general","golf","mma","tennis",[110,122,133],{"id":111,"stem":111,"path":112,"title":113,"category":85,"badge":86,"badgeType":114,"author":87,"authorRole":115,"authorInitials":116,"date":117,"readTime":118,"image":119,"imageAlt":113,"tags":120,"excerpt":121},"liam-plunkett-professional-baseball-debut-england-bowler","\u002Farticles\u002Fliam-plunkett-professional-baseball-debut-england-bowler","Plunkett's Pitch: From England's Fast Lane to the American Diamond","category","SportPulse Contributor","MW","2026-06-27 07:19:55","4 min read","https:\u002F\u002Fichef.bbci.co.uk\u002Face\u002Fstandard\u002F976\u002Fcpsprodpb\u002F493b\u002Flive\u002F2e9ff280-71f0-11f1-8546-8f19e4fe30f4.jpg","Baseball, Cricket, Minor League Baseball, England Cricket","Former England fast bowler Liam Plunkett officially begins his pro baseball career, tackling the ultimate athletic pivot.",{"id":123,"stem":123,"path":124,"title":125,"category":85,"badge":21,"badgeType":114,"author":126,"authorRole":115,"authorInitials":127,"date":128,"readTime":129,"image":130,"imageAlt":125,"tags":131,"excerpt":132},"tennis-parenting-crisis-million-pound-chase","\u002Farticles\u002Ftennis-parenting-crisis-million-pound-chase","The Million-Pound Chase: Why Tennis Breeds Toxic Parenting","Nina Patel","NP","2026-06-26 13:31:54","6 min read","https:\u002F\u002Fichef.bbci.co.uk\u002Face\u002Fstandard\u002F976\u002Fcpsprodpb\u002F2c06\u002Flive\u002F49e13500-7159-11f1-b1db-af71d47507d6.jpg","ATP, WTA, Grand Slams","Individualism, massive financial rewards, and zero squad safety nets make tennis a perfect storm for pushy parents.",{"id":134,"stem":134,"path":135,"title":136,"category":85,"badge":86,"badgeType":114,"author":137,"authorRole":115,"authorInitials":138,"date":139,"readTime":140,"image":141,"imageAlt":136,"tags":142,"excerpt":143},"england-tactical-inferiority-australia-womens-t20-world-cup-final","\u002Farticles\u002Fengland-tactical-inferiority-australia-womens-t20-world-cup-final","Australia's Structural Supremacy Breaks England's Final Dream","Elena Rossi","ER","2026-07-05 21:15:58","7 min read","https:\u002F\u002Fichef.bbci.co.uk\u002Face\u002Fstandard\u002F976\u002Fcpsprodpb\u002Fb420\u002Flive\u002F360cdb00-78b2-11f1-b976-0b9c15b0ccfc.jpg","ICC Women's T20 World Cup, Cricket","England fell to Australia's relentless seven-wicket win, exposing a tactical gap Edwards must close."]