Boxing: Final salute for military man Ross

In December, The Star revealed the Sheffield bantamweight’s recuperation from a shoulder injury was slower than expected.

Tonight, at a Dennis Hobson show at the Magna, he will officially confirm his retirement, at 29.

“The pain in my shoulder, particularly at night, suggests that if it did recover completely, it would probably be 2017 when I boxed next,” he said.

“I’ve had lots of ups and downs in my career and now I’ve made the right decision - I won’t miss the pressure of dieting, selling tickets and getting ready for fights.

“What I’ll miss most are the ring entrances (the former solider was escorted by the military.) That buzz was like nothing else.

“But I am running my own gym now (Morland Rd, Gleadless) - it’s time to start a fresh chapter.”

Some of Burkinshaw’s favourite boxing memories go back as far as when he was 10.

“Me, John Fewkes and Carl Wild used to go and watch fights on TV like Erik Morales v Marco Antonio Barrera - and we wanted to be in wars like that.

“I accomplished that in my own way when I beat Jason Cunningham at Doncaster for the Commonwealth belt (Sept 2014.) That was a full-on war.

“I have had a lot of great influences on me, but Paul ‘Silky’ Jones was probably the best - he also gave me great advice.

“My only regrets were taking on fights at the wrong time for me, like fighting Gavin McDonnell when I had been out for 15 months.” (July 2013.)