Ricky Hatton was 12-years-old when his mum and dad built him a boxing gym in the cellar of their Hattersley pub .

"When I hit the bag or the speed ball all the customers could hear it," he later recalled. "They used to come down and cheer me. It was a little bit dark and damp, but a lot of the old-fashioned gyms were like that. It was brilliant."

It was the start of the journey that would see the The Hitman conquer the boxing world. Hatton, who has died aged 46 , was one of the most successful and popular British boxers of all-time.

A four-belt and two-weight world champion, the self-described 'down-to-earth Manchester lad' was involved in some of the sport's most memorable fights. But those incredible highs would be matched by desperate lows.

Like many fighters before him, once

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