trash, bang, wallop
Louie Lynn completes brilliant rise from rubbish tip gym to BT Sport headline show
RUBBISH boxer Louie Lynn completes a brilliant journey from DIY equipment to BT Sport headliner on Friday.
The infectiously-upbeat 25-year-old featherweight took a job at a recycling plant during lockdown, when boxing and his promising career were put on hold.
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But instead of moping - or mopping - about he brushed up on all of his skills by building his own little gym from the rubbish people had binned.
The ex-scaffolder has form for such brilliant ingenuity from his early days working on sites and his Instagram account is full of videos of his homemade creations.
And his dedication has been rewarded with top spot on Frank Warren’s first prospect’s show where he puts his 9-0 record on the line against 8-0 Amin Jahanzeb.
“I just had to help people with which bin or skip they had to put their waste in, ‘green waste over there, metals and plastics there’, it was alright," he laughed.
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“The hardest thing was not being physically allowed to help people, because of the health and safety rules, so even when any old people came with heavy stuff, we were not allowed to give them a hand and that was difficult.
“It turned out there was a lot of free time so after I had done all the tidying and sweeping up there was plenty of time for some shadow boxing and training.
“I got told off for training on the job a couple of times but I thought if I am going to get sacked for anything then training is the best option.
“I set up my own little gym down there in one of the empty bays, I had a little swinging bag for practicing head movement and made a punchbag out of some old rubbish.
“It was going well until they needed to open the bay up for another skip, so I was evicted from there.”
The Epsom lad is now back training full time at the new Peacock Gym out in Epping.
It’s a long slog for the 9st whirlwind but it’s got a lot easier since his uncle helped him out with a new car after his last motor went up in smoke, a victim of Lynn’s commitment to training.
Lynn said: “The drive from my house in Epsom to the new gym in Epping isn’t too bad, about an hour around the M25.
“It was a lot worse when the gym was in Canning Town and I had no car and had to get the train over and get a lift from my coach Andre.
“It was my own fault though, I had bought a car after my sixth fight, it was a BMW but it had a few miles on it, and didn’t really service it or look after it and it died on me.
“It started smoking while I was driving it but I knew I still had to get to training so I kept on driving it and I couldn’t get it to go over 50mph. I pushed it and pushed it and finally I went too far.
“Anyone else in their right mind would have got it serviced or repaired but I was only worried about getting to training and paid the price.
“Thankfully my uncle decided to sponsor me and got me a lovely truck.”
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Not content with training under fitness-fanatic Martin Bowers and his super-fit team, Lynn carries on his work at home.
Swinging light fittings are turned into punch bags and ropes tied across his bedroom for head movement and footwork exercises.
Lynn’s poor mum has a lot to cope with but it’s paying off as he was recently compared to fellow Brit featherweight Josh Warrington.
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“I use my bedroom like a little gym at home,” he confirmed. “It drives my poor mum mad but she lets me get away with it really, she was the first person to spot my talent as a kid and she loves boxing.
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“It’s great to hear the good feedback I have been getting but I cannot let it affect me. I have to keep my feet on the ground and almost ignore any praise.
“But I do believe I will be a world champion, I have believed that since I was a kid and, God willing, it will happen.”
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