WBO world middleweight champion Billy Joe Saunders credits his boxing career essentially been rescued by one man this year.

Saunders has gone through a few trainers in recent years.

His pro career started off very successfully and culminated in world honours with Jimmy and Mark Tibbs in London but following a period of change, he then moved to renowned boxing trainer Adam Booth, also based in London.

But the geography of both living and training in Saunders’ hometown of London was not working for him.

He needed to get away from home surroundings to focus on boxing and made the decision to move to Sheffield for his training under the guidance of Kell Brook coach Dominic Ingle.

Speaking after a career best performance against David Lemieux, Saunders credits Ingle for absolutely everything this year:

“That’s down to one man and one man only. Dominc Ingle from Sheffield. If it wasn’t for him my boxing career would be finished and over. So down to that man I’m moving like that. Don’t forget he’s trained Naseem (Hamed) and all of them. I go in there – took to his training like a duck to water. I knew the very first day I was excited to get in the ring. I wouldn’t have come over here if I thought I was going to get beat.”

He continued:

“I’m a whole different animal now. When I hurt David I really wanted to put it on him. I really did want to put it on him. But that’s what I pay Dominc Ingle to do and when I went to put it on him – he was screaming take your time and saying don’t, don’t. To be fair it was the best advice because I picked, poked, prodded him and then I just lost him (Lemieux).”

Saunders now continues onto no doubt a big year ahead in 2018.