Willie Limond passes away at the age of 45

WILLIE LIMOND, the previous British and Commonwealth super-lightweight champion, tragically handed away on Monday (April 15) on the age of 45.

Limond, from Glasgow, Scotland, had been making ready for a battle towards Joe Legal guidelines on Could 3 when, whereas driving, he suffered a suspected seizure in his automotive. Discovered unresponsive within the automobile on April 6, he was subsequently taken to Monklands Hospital in Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, the place he remained in a comatose state.

Sadly, Limond, one in all Britain’s hardest boxers, by no means awakened.

In a put up on social media, Limond’s son Jake, additionally a professional boxer, stated his “dad handed away within the early hours of the morning”. He added: “He fought on for close to sufficient 10 days. Warrior.”

Limond was certainly that. A professional since 1999, he fought a complete of 48 occasions and gained on 42 events, competing at super-featherweight, light-weight, and super-lightweight. With strong fundamentals, and an easy skill to glide out and in of vary, he was a boxer to admire; a boxer straightforward on the attention. He was additionally robust, each bodily and mentally, and infrequently throughout fights the rugged Glaswegian in Limond would come out and interrupt spells of in any other case fairly boxing. This, for Limond, made some fights more durable than they wanted to be, however in flip made him a preferred fighter within the eyes of anybody fortunate sufficient to observe him.

After successful 18 bouts in a row to start out his profession, Limond’s first shot on the British title arrived at super-featherweight in 2003. That was the yr he confronted Alex Arthur, a fellow unbeaten Scot with all of the fanfare Limond, on the time, lacked. He gave account of himself on the night time, too, posing Arthur one or two issues earlier than in the end discovering himself stopped in spherical eight.

From there, Limond used the defeat as a lesson and rebuilt. He gained the European Union belt when beating Youssouf Djibaba the next yr after which, in 2006, turned Commonwealth light-weight champion by outpointing Joshua Allotey at Glasgow’s well-known Kelvin Corridor, a favorite venue of his.

This win led to an enormous showdown towards Amir Khan in 2007, for which Limond might be finest remembered. In any case, it was that night time, with so many individuals writing him off and a lot hype surrounding Khan, Limond took the battle to the younger Olympic silver medallist and brought on him all method of issues. Ignoring Khan’s 12-0 document, Limond set about him, hurting him to each the physique and head, and even dropping him in spherical six. Khan, at that stage, appeared on the verge of being stopped, but, to his credit score, managed to show the tables and in reality cease Limond after eight accomplished rounds.

“All people remembers me for that battle and generally it’s higher to be remembered for one thing than not remembered in any respect,” Limond informed me in 2022. “It didn’t go my method however this stuff occur. I don’t agree with the way it went, however, hey, it’s 15 years in the past now. He had his moments and I had mine. He took his and I by no means took mine. The man was getting lengthy counts and all types however Amir acquired up and did what I didn’t do. He completed the battle (Limond retired on his stool). I couldn’t do this. Truthful play.”

Undeterred, Limond once more bounced again, successful his subsequent 5 fights earlier than touchdown a large alternative towards one other well-known fighter, Mexico’s Erik Morales, in 2010. If preventing a legend like Morales wasn’t sufficient, Limond was booked to take action in Mexico Metropolis.

“It was sensible,” Limond recalled. “There have been 56,000 individuals on the Plaza de Toros, the bullring. It was f**king unbelievable. The ambiance was surreal. I want I took my time to take it in.

“I did nicely within the battle. I used to be forward after 4 rounds however got here again after the fourth and my legs felt so heavy. It was the altitude. I couldn’t transfer or breathe. The easiest way to explain it’s like being in a sauna with a sweatsuit on making an attempt to breathe by a straw. Erik then began approaching robust and that was that.”

As for Limond’s professional profession, that continued regardless of the Morales loss. In 2011, a yr after his journey to Mexico, Limond would lose once more, this time towards Anthony Crolla, however then, in 2013, got here a resurgence of types, with Limond stopping the unbeaten Eddie Coyle inside a spherical to win the Commonwealth super-lightweight title; a belt he subsequent defended over 12 rounds towards Mitch Prince. This arrange a giant home conflict the next yr with Curtis Woodhouse, who introduced with him the British super-lightweight title. This was additionally a battle Limond dominated, exhibiting his class all through and dropping Woodhouse twice, as soon as in spherical three and once more in spherical 11.

After retiring for good, it appeared, in 2016, Limond, now in his forties, was enticed again to the ring in 2019 and once more in 2022. Earlier than that second return, Limond stated to Boxing Information: “It’s greater than doubtless this would be the final one. I final fought three years in the past and haven’t performed quite a lot of coaching since. The final 12 weeks have been good for me. They’ve allowed me to get again in form. I’ve missed the coaching and I’ve missed coaching for one thing. If one thing good will get supplied to me after this battle, that would change my thoughts. However, proper now, that is my final battle.”

The thought was to field on the identical invoice as his 18-year-old son, Jake, who would have his second professional battle the identical night time. “I do know Lee Haskins fought on the identical present as his boy in Bristol,” stated Willie, “however I don’t assume it’s ever been performed in Scotland, so will probably be good to be the primary guys to try this.”

There have been no plans for fights past that, but nonetheless Willie continued. After beating CJ Wooden over 4 rounds, and sharing the invoice along with his son in Renfrew, he fought Ricky Burns, one other fashionable Scotsman flitting out and in of retirement, in 2023. This battle ended with Limond getting stopped in eight rounds, solely the end result, relatively than result in retirement, turned Willie’s impetus to battle once more, this time towards Legal guidelines, in Could.

That, for causes unbearably tragic, will not occur. So we should as an alternative attempt to keep in mind Willie Limond the way in which he would need to be remembered and the way in which he deserves to be remembered. He shall be dearly missed.