Super middleweight prospect Thomas O’Toole left Ireland to find a second home in Boston. 

O’Toole won a 10-round unanimous decision over Vaughn Alexander on June 7 at Fenway Park in Boston.

O’Toole, now 14-0 (9 KOs), a 6-foot-3 southpaw, was originally born in Chicago but spent his formative years in Galway, Ireland. After an amateur boxing career, O’Toole turned pro in 2021 and relocated to Boston, a region with a heavy Irish population. When asked where home is for him at the moment, O’Toole was very concise with his response. 

“That is a funny one; it is tough,” O’Toole, 27, told BoxingScene. “I suppose Ireland will always be home, but I have a new home in Boston. I love it here.”

O’Toole now finds himself in the situation that many find themselves in before the bright lights and big stages. He balances his dream of professional boxing with a job at a local restaurant.

“You have to do what you have to do,” O’Toole said. “My parents raised me well, and I had everything I ever needed, but I didn’t have a lot. I know that anything I am going to get in life, I have to get myself.”

One of the benefits of his job? People who have met him through his work have come out to support him. 

Against Alexander, now 19-13-2 (12 KOs), the brother of former titleholder Devon Alexander, O’Toole faced a quality veteran. Since losing his first professional bout in 2018, the 39-year-old from St. Louis, Missouri, has gone on to become a road warrior, taking short-notice fights and sometimes beating untested prospects. 

O’Toole had to show a competent professional style, one he credits his trainer Mark DeLuca for, though it wasn’t easy transitioning to the pros.

“It was a little difficult,” O’Toole said. “Under Mark, I have really been able to develop my pro style.”

O’Toole now sits in the spot many up-and-comers are in: waiting for a chance to be defined as a top fighter. O’Toole, who speaks Irish Gaelic, wants to return home with a belt one day.

“What motivates me is bringing a belt back to Ireland,” O’Toole said. “It would be great to bring a belt, but to also bring a big fight as well.”