Fighting this man is like being battered by baseball bats

But he is using the downtime to hone his skills and fitness and is already close to the weight limit, according to Amer Khan, one of his sparring partners.

Khan, a veteran at 44, is so impressed with his fellow Sheffielder that he believes he is ahead of some of the city's former greats, at the same time in their own professional careers.

"I have sparred the likes of Kell Brook, Kid Galahad, Johnny Nelson and I think Shak is achieving higher levels than they were at that stage of their careers.

"Other than Naseem Hamed, I can't think of any Sheffield fighter in history who was as competent as Shak is now after 14 fights.

"I have done four to six weeks sparring with him at the Manor Boxing Academy and I have seen his flourishing in the same sort of atmosphere as I witnessed at the Ingle gym in the 1990s.

"He has got his work and life balance right and is in a good place."

Khan says he has paid a personal price for sparring with Thompson, 28.

"The day after, my body feels like it has been battered by baseball bats.

"The thing about Shak is that he can fight or box and can do all the tricks. His best quality is his consistency in the gym and fitness levels.

"When you look at previous Sheffield champions you had Naz who was truly gifted, Kell with his athleticism, Johnny with his boxing brain, Clinton Woods was blessed with determination, grit and a cast iron chin, and now we have Shak with his reach and physical state - he is a monster at middleweight.

"It is not just about boxing - sometimes people are genetically gifted and he is so big and fresh at that weight. There is more fat on a butcher's apron.

"He is a 6ft 3ins southpaw, unbeaten with lots of knockouts, and that alone is a red flag to potential opponents, who will try and dodge him" said Khan.

"I really hope he gets the fights he wants, and if he does I can see him being British and Commonwealth champion by the end of the year.

"He has a good manager in Kevin Maree - he has done a great job with Callum Simpson - and I hope they can pull it off."

Shak's last outing was a fourth-round knockout of Argentina's David Benitez at the Park Community Arena, Sheffield.

He is currently ranked fifth in the UK, behind Chris Eubank Jr, Liam Smith, Kieron Conway, and Denzel Bentley.

Denny from the West Midlands is sixth in the Boxrec charts.

Meanwhile, top prospect Delicious Orie, who has trained at Steel City gym and sparred with Liam Cameron, says he has quit the sport. The 27-year-old won gold medals at the 2022 Commonwealth and 2023 European Games.