Blackpool bouncer, who ‘hated’ his job, becomes bare-knuckle boxing world champion aged 45.

Blackpool bouncer, who ‘hated’ his job, becomes bare-knuckle boxing world champion aged 45.

A former Blackpool bouncer who “hates” his job has proved age is no barrier by becoming a bare-knuckle boxing world champion at the age of 45 Richie Leake, who by his own admission has a “shot” knee and “gets out of bed in the morning groaning” defeated kingpin Dan Podmore last month.

He had called late in the tournament at BKB 37 in Wolverhampton and expected it to be the last fight of his fighting career.

After being left bloodied and beaten by Podmore in the opening round, Leake rallied to deliver a stunning knockout in the third round, which stunned the crowd of almost 2000 people. This is far from Blackpool’s goalkeeper, a job he hasn’t missed for a while. He said “I hate it, I can’t think of anything worse.

Everything in Blackpool is haran-dos and people on holidays.” “They can act like fools because they know they won’t be back next week. It’s part of the carnage season, you have to be on guard all the time.” “As I got older, I settled down. My partner and I have been together for 17 years and we have four children. I can’t do that anymore.”

Reflecting on the fight, Leake, now an evacuation man, said: “He had to kill me to get me to leave. If it was going to be my last fight, I’d come out” on my shield. “He was taking me in the first round. I probably get punched more than I should, but I’m pretty tough. I know I can shoot.”

“Nobody stopped me bareback, I knew I could weather the storm and I caught it with some good shots. When you clock something right in bareback it’s anybody’s game.” Having “tried to retire” in the past, Leake feels obligated to defend the prestigious title at least once.

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“At the same time, I’m 45,” he said, though. “My knee is shot. Everything gets harder [as you get older]. I get out of bed in the morning and groan!” “When everyone was asking after the fight, ‘What’s next?’ I just wanted to have a beer stuffed in my mouth. That was me, keep it simple.”

Having the belt is especially sweet for Leak, who was nicknamed Viking, due to the look of the fighters in BKB. “It’s the best company, the premiership of sleeping boots,” declared Leake, who boxed successfully at the unlicensed venue before switching to sleeping boots “Some kids out there have had great amateur [gloved boxing] careers. Some of them have been in it with people like Anthony Joshua and Joe Joyce. They can throw, drive, and slide, they’re good.”

“I was never the best technical boxer but in bare-knuckle, I think it helps that you’re a little older and you know you can shoot. And in heavyweight matches, it can stop on a dime. All you have to do.” “Do we bust someone’s eye?” It opened and everything was finished.

With his wispy beard and multiple Viking tattoos or Viking tattoos, Leake is one of the most recognizable personalities in BKB. He joked: “I had a beard because it became fashionable, and now every 21-year-old has one!” Despite being in the latter stages of his career, Leake did not rule out another race, admitting that fighting is in his DNA. “I tried to pull away about six times,” he laughed. “But I’m such a character.”

“I need a purpose in life, something to focus on. It’s a big part of me.” “There’s an old saying that warriors must fight before they fight.”

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