TYSON FURY never forgets his roots and still holidays with friends in the place where his boxing journey was only beginning.
Fury lived in Torquay with his family for about six months in his early teens, and started boxing in the Torbay Amateur Boxing Club.
It is situated in Hele Road, which Devon Live describe as ‘Torquay’s roughest area’.
Retired amateur coach Dave Stacey still remembers the first day future heavyweight champion Fury walked through the doors.
He told Devon Live: “I trained Tyson Fury when he first started. He was a traveller and he came in to us in Torquay when he was a teenager.
“This young boy turned up on his own one night and asked to train with us. He was a big lad, I’d say nearly six foot tall then.
“We didn’t turn away boys who wanted to train.
“Although he never boxed for us, he kept coming to train and spar for about six months, and then his family must have moved on.
“I didn’t remember much about him, because I treat everyone the same and there were lots of other boys to look after.”
Fury, 32, still spends time in Torbay on holiday and will never refuse taking a photo with his fans.
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More than that, he offers local boxing hopefuls inspiration, having started out in the same gym as them, before becoming an unbeaten superstar.
Torbay ABC manager Mike Reardon said: “The kids in the club today all know about Tyson Fury and they really look up to him – knowing that he boxed here in Torquay as a kid really gives them an edge.
“He’s an inspiration for kids down here in Devon. We can feel cut off from everything in this part of the world.
“So it helps them believe that they can achieve anything. If Tyson can become world champion then they can.
“We still get travellers come to the club now when they are passing through.
“They come because of Tyson Fury and they tell us that he’s still in this area sometimes.
During one of Fury’s visits to south-coast, he was almost 28 STONE and out the ring for two years as he vacated his unified belts.
After dethroning heavyweight legend Wladimir Klitschko in 2015, the Gypsy King suffered from depression and substance abuse.
But only one year after ballooning up in weight and taking pictures with Torbay locals, Fury was on the comeback trail, shedding 10 STONE.
Even more remarkably, two years later the inspirational boxing hero recaptured the title to cap off his sensational turnaround.
After beating Deontay Wilder, 35, last February, the pair are now set for a trilogy bout on July 24 in Las Vegas.
But over 5,000 miles away, Fury’s story still resonates with inspired amateurs.
Torbay ABC head coach Darrell Asplen said: “The younger members still talk about Tyson Fury all the time.
“We use it as a stepping stone to inspire them. Just because you live in this part of the country doesn’t mean you can’t become a world champion.
“We are keeping a lot of kids off the streets who have nowhere else to go – the police even bring them in to us sometimes.
“Tyson Fury is brilliant – he’s so brave, even when he’s on the edge and one step away from losing everything.”
