Michael Conlan says he has no worries about being on the wrong end of a controversial decision as he challenges Leigh Wood for the WBA featherweight title in Wood’s home city of Nottingham. 

Judging in the UK is under the spotlight right now and Wood-Conlan is the first world title fight in the country since Josh Taylor’s controversial split decision win over Jack Catterall last month, which led this week to Ian John-Lewis being downgraded.  

Conlan knows more than anyone what it is like to be on the wrong end of a bad decision, having lost a rotten decision at the Rio Olympics, which kick-started a crisis in amateur boxing. 

“No one deserves to have their dreams torn away from them in the way I did,” Conlan said. “It would be really sad to see an Olympic Games without boxing, but hopefully we have a bit of time and can fix it before then. 

“It has been going on for so long, it took until 2016 and me shouting about it for something to be done. Can it be fixed? It’s a massive question.” 

But it has become increasingly tough to get a decision as the away fighter in the UK and Conlan said he was opposed to having three UK judges for the fight. While Conlan comes from Belfast, Northern Ireland, which is n the UK, he is an Irish citizen. 

“If you look at the last few years of boxing on these shores, why would any foreign fighter want to come to the UK?” he said. “The UK is becoming like how Germany was or the United States for UK and Irish fighters. It’s becoming very tough to get decisions. 

“I was devastated for Jack Catterall, but selfishly, I was probably glad it happened now than for my own fight.  

“There will be international judges, not just UK judges. I know it was pushed that we are both UK fighters, but I said I’m not, I’m Irish and that’s different. 

“I’m not worrying about having to knock anybody out. I am just focused on being the best Michael Conlan I can be in there and if I do that, no judge in the world could rob me of what I will do. 

“Hopefully on March 12 I don’t have to flip the bird again and go crazy.” 

Robert Smith, general secretary of the BBBoC, said there was never any prospect of having all UK officials for the fight because he is licensed in the United States.

"It was always going to be two UK officials and two others," Smith said. "To imply he would not have all UK officials is not true as he would have no influence in appointment of officials."

It is a decade since Conlan won an Olympic medal in London and he was able to capitalize on his disappointment in Rio by signing a big deal with Top Rank. But Conlan insists he has not had it easy in his career. 

“This will be an accumulation of everything I have done,” he said. “I hear Leigh saying I have had an easy route as far as my pro career has gone, and it does look like it has been smooth sailing, but if you dig down into everything I have done in my career, from going to national championships to going to World Championships and Olympic Games, to going away to America at the start of my pro career, being away from everyone and having it hard in California. 

“This has not been plain sailing. It has been tough, there have been many ups and downs. I’m right at the tip now, I just need to knock it over the line.” 

Ron Lewis is a senior writer for BoxingScene. He was Boxing Correspondent for The Times, where he worked from 2001-2019 - covering four Olympic Games and numerous world title fights across the globe. He has written about boxing for a wide variety of publications worldwide since the 1980s.