Sheffield’s Kid Galahad finally realises his dream of becoming world champion

The Ingle Gym fighter (28-1, 17 KOs) had been denied the same title in a split decision defeat to Josh Warrington in 2019, but he captured the vacant belt after gradually breaking down the stubborn resistance of Dickens, who was pulled out by his corner after the eleventh round.

In doing so, the 31-year-old – whose real name is Abdul-Bari Awad – has become the fifth world champion from Wincobank’s world-famous Ingle Gym, following in the footsteps of Johnny Nelson, "Prince" Naseem Hamed, Junior Witter and, more recently, Kell Brook.

After the win Galahad paid tribute to Brendan Ingle as the last of the legendary late boxing trainer’s proteges.

Ingle batted off critics of a 12-year-old tearaway Galahad when he first arrived at St Thomas’ Boxing Club and insisted he would become a world champion.

“I’m just over the moon man,” he said.

“Brendan Ingle told me that I’m going to win everything from Super-Bantamweight up to Lightweight. Nobody believed me and everyone doubted me when I said I’d become Word Champion. Before I met Brendan, I would have probably been locked up in jail. He was the only person that gave me hope.

"If it wasn’t for boxing, Eddie Hearn, DAZN, Brendan Ingle, my mum I’d probably be locked up or dead.

“Naseem Hamed, I met him at the local mosque. I said to him, ‘Naz, I want to be a world champion like you’. He told me if I wanted to become a world champion I needed to go and find Brendan Ingle at the St Thomas’ Boxing Club. The rest is history. I went and met Brendan and that’s it.

“Every single day two busses. 45 minutes. I used to get up at 5.45 to get in for 6.45. Every single day from the age of 12 years old. When I was 15 I moved out of my area. Brendan told me I’d end up locked up or dead if I stayed in that area. I lived in a crappy house at the bottom of the road with about five other boxers. There were rats and everything. I used to have a mattress on the floor. I lived there from the age of 15 until I was 20 and I got enough money to get my own house."

Galahad’s head trainer Dominic Ingle – one of Brendan’s sons – said there would be no ‘ring rust’ with his fighter, who had been out of the ring for 18 months before Saturday, because “he lives the life”.

Indeed, a social media post on Sunday morning showed Galahad training despite completing 11 rounds the evening before.

His mum was also in Brentwood, Essex to see her son crowned world champion.

“She’s over the moon,” he said.

"We’ve come from nothing. Hopefully I make a few quid out of this and get her a nice house, and get out of the area.”

Galahad said he hopes to fight again this year, possibly in December, before a unification bout in future.

Promoter Eddie Hearn said the next step will be a title defence in Sheffield.