The tribute is in loving memory of his second cousins, who both died amid tragic circumstances while the Irish welterweight contender was away in Dublin for this most recent training camp under Andy Lee. Donovan (14-2, 11 KOs) admits the losses have made training camp “stressful,” but he is determined to do them both proud as he bids to reignite his own career with a win.

“I've dedicated the fight to them both,” Donovan told The Ring. “I’ve put their names on my fight kit and shorts. Obviously, it has not been easy. I’m trying to balance the feelings of my own family at home, what they were going through, things like that.

“But whose life is easy? The thing is, we’ve just got to keep strong and keep moving forward. I’m tired of deaths. I’m tired of all this sorrow and things like this. It is what it is. It’s our life, and we’ve just got to keep moving forward.”

Scarlett, a 29-year-old mother of one, died after three weeks on life support at Cork University Hospital following a roadside attack just north of Donovan’s hometown of Limerick. Her brother, Jason, who was pallbearer at her funeral April 17, then died two days later. His body was recovered from a river in Limerick on the evening of April 19.

“They were my dad’s first cousins,” a heartbroken Donovan said. “I attended Scarlett’s funeral and spent all of that day with Jason. “I ended up coming back up to find out he had drowned. It was extremely stressful. I just couldn’t get to grips with it enough to head to Jason’s funeral.

“I just told Andy that I can’t face heading back down to Limerick for another funeral. I’m just going to stay in camp. I’m just going to give my wishes to the family. I just tried to be locked in as much as I could be in this camp. I owe it to them to give it everything now. I understand I’m coming of age at 27 years old, and there’s a lot of pressure on these fights.

“I know my private life, and I understand the family issues are extremely tough, but I have to push. I’ve never been more locked in, ever, in any single camp. Andy will probably tell you the same thing. This is the best I’ve ever been.”

Donovan certainly cuts a far more serious figure than the one who dressed up as a “Crocodile Hunter” for the press conference ahead of his first defeat to Lewis Crocker in April 2025. His long, bleach-blonde hair has been shaved off completely and he wears dark glasses and a black shirt as he speaks to The Ring ahead of his IBF welterweight elimination match with Ukraine’s Chukhadzhian (26-3, 14 KOs).

“There’s no more playboy,” Donovan said. “It’s time to get down to brass tacks now. Instead of looking good, I actually have to be good. Trying to be the full package is not easy. Now the only thing I am focused on is getting the result on the night.”

A victory in a main event DAZN will stream worldwide has never been more important for Donovan given that his last two outings have ended in defeat. First there was the controversial disqualification against Crocker in their first clash, before a far more comprehensive victory for the Belfast man when they met for the IBF welterweight title six months later.

Donovan knows any victory against Chukhadzhian, whose only two defeats in the last decade have come against Jaron Ennis, will secure him a third shot at one of the IBF’s 147-pound championships.

“It’s not a great feeling to look at my record and see two losses in a row,” Donovan said. “I know that losing for a third time will change the narrative of my career, so I understand what is on the line in this fight. Losing to Crocker has been very difficult and it still is. I think about it every day. I think about it when I go to sleep. I think about it when I wake up. I think about how close I was to being world champion.

“The only way I can have redemption is winning this fight and having that third fight with Crocker. So, I have a big away day in Germany where I can start to put things right. I know the way I’m performing and working in the gym. If I’m not going to be a world champion from Ireland, then God help the rest of the kids coming through.”