McKenna established the pattern early. The 27-year-old used his height and reach to spear Oliha with jabs upstairs and to the body, then moved before the Italian challenger was able to answer effectively.
Oliha tried to close the distance and turn the fight into something more physical, but McKenna rarely remained stationary long enough for him to sustain an attack. When Oliha came forward, McKenna frequently met him with right hands, uppercuts and combinations.
The difference became increasingly clear through the middle rounds. Oliha continued pressing, occasionally getting to the body, but he struggled to deal with McKenna’s activity at long and intermediate range.
McKenna wasn’t limited to boxing from the outside. He was comfortable exchanging at close range when necessary before creating space and returning to his jab.
A clash of heads left McKenna with a cut on his forehead later in the fight, but it did little to change his approach. He remained composed as the Dublin crowd chanted his name and continued picking Oliha off as the rounds disappeared.
Oliha needed something dramatic late and never found it. McKenna refused to give him the stationary target required to change the fight with one punch, closing out the championship rounds without surrendering control.
The victory gives Ireland its first middleweight world champion since Andy Lee and turns McKenna into a major player in the division.
The IBF championship became vacant after Janibek Alimkhanuly was stripped of the belt, giving McKenna and Oliha their opportunity in Dublin. McKenna took full advantage, producing a disciplined 12-round performance when the biggest prize of his career was at stake.
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