MACAULAY MCGOWAN was supposed to stop accepting dangerous fights after his baby boy won the toughest one of all.
In December 2019 the Manchester super-welter was supposed to welcome his little boy smoothly into the world.
But brave missus Francesca suffered a placental abruption and internal haemorrhage, robbing little Albie of his oxygen supply.
The fearless light-flyweight suffered Hypoxic-Ischaemic Encephalopathy – or birth asphyxia – and the biggest concern was whether or not he would survive – not even how much brain damage he would suffer.
The undefeated new father was almost destroyed and – faced with the added financial and psychological punishment of the Covid lockdown – he took three rushed fights as the rank underdog and lost them all.
Incredibly Albie has since beaten odds that daddy could have only dream of and is now walking and talking and attending nursery and dad has rebuilt with six wins, a harsh draw and an even harsher points defeat.
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But he’s back in the deep end on Friday on Channel 5, against celebrated German amateur Abass Baraou for the European title, but tooled with a far brighter outlook and side hustle.
“They were dark days,” McGowan told SunSport with the sounds of jet engines rattling down the phone.
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“I lost three fights on the spin, 30 long rounds, and never felt a thing.
“I was using boxing as a distraction from what my son and missus were going through.
“Being punched in the face for half an hour by an amateur star or a former world champion was better than facing up to what my lad was going through.
“We had no idea how good or bad things would be, we just had to sit and watch and wait and hope and then slowly he got up and started walking and then talking and, although we have to keep an eye on a few things and he’s a bit behind his class with his speech, he has come on so much and has now started at nursery.
“Now I am boxing because I love it again and I think I can surprise a few people and upset a few opponents.
“I never wanted easy fights and I still don’t. But now I am not just getting beaten up to help numb me to stuff outside the ring.”
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It would be a very emotional phone call if it wasn’t for the constant roar of aeroplanes drowning out some of McGowan’s poignant words.
“I’m up a scaffold near the airport,” he says very casually.
“When I am not on the school run or training I come and labour for my mate’s construction firm, Broadbent Developments.
“I do it right up to a week or two before the fight, they offer to teach me the trades and get me trained up.
“But I’m already OCD about boxing and everything else in my life, so I come on site to have a laugh, keep me busy and entertain the lads.”
Despite having so much on his plate, the working-class hero refuses to boast about his ability or chances of beating Baraou. The same cannot be said of seven-year-old daughter and No1 fan Francesca.
McGowan explained: “She ran out of a playground recently crying and saying some bigger boys were being mean to her.
“I went in to calm everything down and make sure everyone was being kind to each other.
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“And the lads in there said she had been telling everyone that her dad is a professional boxer who can beat everyone up.
“So I will be hiding the belt from her if I get it home, I can’t have her talking me into fights, she’ll be offering me out to everyone and I’ve got to get back on the tools with the lads next week.”
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
