When he first stepped into the punishing and intimidating surroundings of an amateur boxing gym, the primary aim for Chris Billam-Smith was merely to supply himself with an impressive playground story.
‘My brother Ben was always into boxing,’ the European and Commonwealth cruiserweight champion tells Sportsmail. ‘He took me a handful of times when I was a teenager, but I was sort of just going so I could tell my mates at school the next day that I went to boxing last night to sound cool.
‘Then when I went to college I met a mate of mine, Dean, and I started training with him.I went to watch him fight and everyone was there chanting his name. I just remember stopping and thinking, “that must be amazing, having everyone there and your friends and family chanting your name. What a feeling that must be.”‘
Chris Billam-Smith is set to take on Isaac Chamberlain in Bournemouth on Saturday night
Chamberlain (centre) will provide a stern test for the 31-year-old on his big homecoming
Billam-Smith is fighting back in his home town for Entertainment News the first time in a number of years
A late starter in the sport, Billam-Smith, 31, began chasing the same euphoric high as Dean when he bit down on his gum shield and embarked on his own fighting career at the age of 16.