An Arbroath boxer is risking his career and wellbeing to raise money for mental health charities after being rocked by tragic deaths in his hometown.
Angus fighter Corey McCulloch, 26, will take on Jamie McGuire on Saturday in his fourth professional fight with only a fraction of the preparation he would normally put in before a bout.
He will donate his entire purse to charity after the recent death in Arbroath of 21-year-old Bailey Menmuir triggered memories of his friend, former sparring partner and youth boxing champion Dean Heenan, who was also found dead in tragic circumstances in the Angus town in 2012.
He said: “I normally put in between six and eight weeks of hard training before a fight, but this time it’s just a couple of weeks.
“With this fight, I’m not looking to win or progress my career but to raise as much money as I can.
“That’s probably not the right way of looking at it because my opponent won’t be thinking like that.
“Normally, when you fight, you are thinking about your record and everything to do with that.”
He said he hoped to raise more than £1,000 with his own takings supplemented by those from coach George ‘Shug’ Ramsay and manager Sam Kynoch, who are also donating their share to charity.
Corey, who also works offshore, said he followed last month’s search for Bailey with a growing sense of alarm.
“I didn’t know him well, but I would say hello to him in the street.”
He said he was inspired to get in the ring quickly by the Arbroath community’s reaction to the tragedy, such as the recent charity football match organised by Bailey’s friends at the town’s Gayfield ground.
“More people are wising up to it [mental health problems] and trying to help others as much as they can.
“A big thing is having the courage to say something. Just open your mouth and say something. I know it can’t always be easy.”
He said the death, in January this year, had “shocked” many young people in the town, bringing back memories of his close friend.
He said Dean could have gone on to have a glittering career in the boxing world.
“Regardless of how hard I trained, he was always better than me. He was an incredible boxer from a young age. He could have gone on and done amazing things in the sport.”
Coach George ‘Shug’ Ramsay said: “One of my sons was friends with Bailey and what happened hit him and the town hard.
“Dean also used to box with me when he was younger.
“Corey wasn’t supposed to be fighting this fight but he said he wanted to do something positive so that was that.”
Corey fights Jamie McGuire on Saturday in Paisley’s Lagoon Leisure Centre at 6.30pm. Tickets are available from the boxer’s Facebook page.
