Performances like Chris Duncan’s gutsy win over Mateusz Rebecki 4 months in the past can outline a fighter.

In a brutal back-and-forth battle, which left each fighters bloodied and battered, it was Scotland’s Duncan who received his hand raised in a fight-of-the-year contender.

Followers and pundits praised Duncan for the grit and willpower he confirmed, whereas Duncan says even his teaching staff have been stunned by the extent of his efficiency.

“My coaching companion Robert Whiteford – I do not assume he knew I used to be able to that and he sung my praises after,” Duncan informed BBC Sport.

Duncan, nonetheless, was not stunned by his exhibiting.

He knew what he was able to as a result of the trauma he skilled as an novice fighter constructed the resilience he would wish to beat life’s hardest challenges.

On 18 April 2014, a day earlier than Duncan’s novice debut, his mom Elaine was murdered by her boyfriend James Morley, who was jailed for all times for the crime.

“I nonetheless went forward with the struggle the next day. Lots of people would have pulled out in that second,” mentioned Duncan.

“I received the struggle, and I keep in mind standing within the membership after with a few bottles of beer. I used to be a shepherd on the time, and I used to be like ‘this life is not for me any extra’.

“I am working exhausting and my life might be ripped away from me at any instantaneous.”