Ishmael Davis and Caoimhin Agyarko come from opposite ends of the boxing spectrum but the junior middleweight contenders may have found each other at exactly the right moment.

Davis and Agyarko need each other. On Saturday night, they will meet over 12 rounds that will have a significant impact on the course of both men's careers.

DAZN will broadcast the action from Windsor Park in Belfast, headlined by the vacant IBF welterweight title fight between Lewis Crocker and Paddy Donovan.

In terms of personality, approach and background, the pair couldn’t be more different.

Agyarko (17-0, 7 KOs) turned professional after a long, successful amateur career. He won a national title and represented Ireland on the international circuit.

Since then the 28-year-old has flitted between promoters and broadcasters but never quite been able to translate his undoubted talent into a really meaningful win. Eight years into his career, a split decision win over Troy Williamson remains his most significant victory.

Davis (13-2, 6 KOs) had to take an entirely different approach. Apart from a single amateur fight when he was 11-years-old, Davis learned his trade in the gym and small halls, needing to snatch at any opportunity coming his way, no matter how unlikely or difficult.

In September 2024, Davis was handed the chance to step in on less than a week's notice and fight Josh Kelly on the undercard of Daniel Dubois' IBF heavyweight title defence against Anthony Joshua.

Although he lost a majority decision, a decent showing earned him another late notice shot at The Ring's No. 6-ranked junior middleweight, Serhii Bohachuk. Davis found the Ukrainian a much stiffer proposition and was retired in his corner after six difficult rounds.

If Agyarko has spent his professional career trying different doors, Davis has had to kick them down and deal with what he found behind them.

"He talks about himself in the third person," Davis told The Ring as he detailed the differences between he and Agyarko.

"If you look at that, you can see that in his own head he holds himself up very highly so he's thinking, "Nah, I'm not doing that, I'm doing this. I want to do this. This is how everything is supposed to go and if it doesn't go like this, I don't want nothing to do with it."

"That's not how I look at life, because life's not like that. Even if it wasn't boxing, nothing goes exactly how you want it to go.

"Sometimes you have to manoeuvre through life. If something comes, I'm going to give it my all and hopefully, I get through that door and then I keep going. As time goes on, you're just building."

A teenage Davis would never have been able to imagine the path his life would eventually take. He became a father to twin boys when he was just 14 and the search for money led him to the streets of Leeds where he became deeply engrained in gang life.

His teenage years were spent on the roads and ended in a jail cell.

Davis may have lost to Kelly and Bohachuk but earned respect while being well compensated for his efforts.

For the first time in his life, he found himself with the time and means to sit back, relax and plan his next move.

Rather than resting on his success or waiting for the next opportunity to find him, Davis reinvested his money into himself. He recently returned from a two-month long trip to America.

Davis spent time with Guillermo Rigondeaux and Keyshawn Davis. He trained in front of Brian 'Bo-Mac' McIntyre and Sugar Hill Steward. He sparred Blair Cobbs, Troy Isley and Vladimir Shishkin.

His slick, relaxed style proved popular but seeing how top level talent operates opened his eyes to just what might be possible.

"Yeah, I just went by myself, man. I just got away for two months and met some good guys," Davis said.

"You know what it is? Everyone sees someone on the internet but then when you meet them, you just realise that everyone's just a normal human being and we're all the same. We're just chasing different dreams."