Jim Rock


Jim Rock is an Irish former professional boxer who competed from 1995 to 2009. He is the only boxer to have held the Irish title at four different weights divisions: light-middleweight, middleweight, super-middleweight and light-heavyweight.

Background

Family

Rock was born into a large family in the Blanchardstown area of west Dublin. Rock is a brother of hip-hop artist Ste V Roc and a cousin of former Irish welterweight champion Robbie Murray. Rock is now married with a young family. Rock's sister, Deirdre is currently a Psychology teacher at 'Britain's Brainiest School'.

Business

Out of the ring, Rock is a successful businessman and entrepreneur and runs a car dealership in Dublin, dealing in high class motor vehicles such as Mercedes, Ferrari and BMW. Rock has said that he fights for the love of the sport and not the money and has been known to donate the earnings from his fights to charity.

TV and film

In 2003, Rock trained actor Matthew McConaughey in preparation for his role in the film Reign of Fire. In return, McConaughey worked Rock's corner during his victory over Jason Collins.
In March 2007, Rock fought a five-round exhibition fight in Dublin against former Olympic champion Michael Carruth.
Rock, along with Mick Dowling, co-presents boxing broadcasts for the Irish national television broadcaster, RTÉ.

Boxing career

Rock boxed as an amateur prior to turning professional in November 1995. He won his first fight at the Point Depot in Dublin, beating the previously unbeaten Craig Lynch the undercard of a bill that included fellow Irish boxers Steve Collins and Eamonn Magee.
Rock is a veteran of the Dublin professional fight scene; however, he fights out of the Breen Gym in Belfast. Rock is a former WAA Inter-Continental European Super Middleweight Title, IBC Middleweight Title, WBF Continental European Light Middleweight Title, Irish Light Middleweight Title and Irish Super Middleweight Title holder and current Irish Middleweight Title holder. However, arguably his biggest fight to date was against Margate based Iranian, Mehrdud "Takaloo" Takalobigashi for the WBU Light Middleweight Title which took place in Belfast's Odyssey Arena in February 2003. Rock lost this keenly contested fight to an explosive overhand right knock out defeat in the ninth round.

Brian Peters

Rock currently fights on Brian Peters promotions which are broadcast on Irish station RTÉ and is unbeaten since 2003. Derry fighter John Duddy has displayed interest in taking on the Dubliner for the Irish middleweight title. Duddy's management attended Rock's 3 June 2006 fight against Kevin Phelan in Dublin, a seventh round TKO victory for Rock. The fight was initially scheduled for 29 September 2006 at Madison Square Garden, but was then postponed, for a November 2006 bout in Dublin, Ireland which again did not materialise.
The speculation of a potential superfight against John Duddy continued into 2007 and a bill including a Duddy/Rock match up and a Bernard Dunne title defence was planned for late summer 2007.