AT just 3ft tall Aiden ‘LikkleMan’ Henry is the most unlikely pay-per-view boxing star imaginable but his story is every inch as impressive as the fight game’s giant heroes.
Born with dwarfism in Coventry 26 years ago, Henry suffered such heartbreaking rejection from the people who should have loved and protected him most.
It was only in local gangs that he was able to find any protection from the bullies who wanted to take liberties with him.
A life of crime and prison sentence for burglary followed but while caged he posted a string of madcap videos that earned support from champion boxers and music stars.
Since his release in March 2019, Henry has turned his life around, apologised for his crimes and trained with stars like Conor Benn and Anthony Yarde for his fight with fellow dwarf Salim Chiboub on Saturday.
And his huge social media following – which includes almost 500,000 Instagram fans – means his £4.99 showdown could be the success of the summer while the likes of Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury and Canelo have been forced to sit out.
It will mark a Rocky-like comeback story.
Henry told SunSport: “I was born fighting, when you are born half the size of a normal man you have to fight twice as hard to get anywhere in life.
“I was born into a life of gangs, drugs and crime, like a lot of people are in certain areas. But on top of that I am this size.
“I didn’t go to school, I can’t read or write, I didn’t have parents.
“I have matured a lot now but my brain is definitely wired differently to everyone else.
“I’ve had 25 bad years behind me, I have had to apologise for a lot of things I am sorry for, but now I have this chance to turn my life around and I am going to take it.”
Henry comes close to getting deep on his early struggles but pulls himself back, his hard-man outlook ingrained long before he ever picked up a pair of gloves.
The reformed bad-boy will not offer up sob stories but he is proud he has made his area proud and wants to use his platform to apologise to anyone he wronged.
He said: “Anyone who knows my story will hopefully respect me more now because they will know what I went through.
“I was a little f***er, I have to admit I was a little b******. And I am sorry to all the people I hurt in the past but I had to do certain things to feed myself and survive.
“I committed burglaries because I had no other way to live, I couldn’t do just one £1m robbery because it would be too easy to spot the 3ft black man in the police line-up.
“But that is my past, I am thankful for how it made me but that’s behind me and this golden ticket is helping me change my life.”
LikkleMan insists he is not a circus act being exploited, his social media power means he is in control of his second career and he has big dreams once crowds are allowed in events.
Coventry City fans have to travel to Birmingham to watch their football team but Henry reckons his particular charms could give them a great showdown closer to home.
He said: “I could sell out the Ricoh Arena, definitely.
“Because I am small but confident with it, people have never seen that combination and are intrigued.
“Girls are fascinated about whether things are in proportion, it’s just my everyday life.
“From a very young age I have been aggressive because of how I have been treated.
“Now I can hopefully make that work for me and better my life, because that is all I have wanted the chance to do.”
