AFTER over four years away from the ring, it seemed as though Tyrone Nurse, 37-7-2 (7 KOs), had washed his hands of boxing and moved on to pastures new without a formal announcement or a glimmer of a goodbye. Now, following a period of reflection, Nurse has officially confirmed that his professional career has come to a close, but his time in the sport itself may only be approaching its next chapter.
The West Yorkshireman accumulated an impressive record of 18-0 within three-and-a-half years of turning professional but soon learned that he would need to up the level of his competition or earn some promotional backing if title opportunities were to come.
As a result, the forever-braided super-lightweight entered ‘Prizefighter 23’ with hopes of making a name for himself and defeated the previously unbeaten Dave Miles and 35-fight veteran Young Mutley to reach the final of the tournament, where he suffered a first career defeat to Adil Anwar, despite a spirited effort.
Regardless of the loss, Nurse’s name became a more known one and Central Area and English title successes soon followed before eventually challenging Chris Jenkins for the coveted British title – drawing in their first encounter but picking up the Lonsdale Belt in a unanimous decision win when they met for a second time.
Trained by his father, Chris Aston, Nurse established his quality domestically with title defences against the late Willie Limond, Tommy Coyle and Joe Hughes before a solid reign was brought to an end by current world title hopeful Jack Catterall in late 2017, where Nurse lost by just one round on one of the judges’ scorecards.
However, once Nurse lost his status as a champion, promotional interest reverted back to the level of old and routes to the big stage once again became limited, forcing him to travel to Australia in a bid to get his career back on track where he lost a controversial split-decision to Jack Brubaker ‘Down Under’ – a decision that Nurse told Boxing News still baffles him to this day.
“[The Brubaker fight] was necessary to get into a position. Winning that would have made me mandatory for the Commonwealth welterweight champion, I think it was Josh Kelly at the time. I was still on it, and I was game then, the camp was fine for what time we had. It was just unfortunate that the judges were all blind.”
Once he had returned to British soil, Nurse would go on to lose two more tight decisions, first in a rematch against Liam Taylor and then in a challenge for the English title against Ekow Essuman, failing to get the rub of the green in a majority decision defeat, as he had become accustomed to.
Finally, Nurse returned to winning ways in a couple of six-round tick-overs during 2019 before receiving an offer to travel to Marbella and face former European champion Kerman Lejarraga, presented itself.
At the time, Lejarraga’s only losses came against well-respected eventual world title challenger David Avanesyan and early knockout victories against Bradley Skeete and Frankie Gavin had proven Lejarraga as a dangerous operator to the British audience.
Still, having not trumped an opponent with a winning record in over three years, Nurse accepted the challenge but now confesses that he probably shouldn’t have, unmoved by the fact that he took the Spaniard the full 10 rounds.
“I remember my dad ringing and offering the [Lejarraga] fight, I said let me check my weight and I’ll call you back. I finished my cake jumped on the scales at around 12st 8lbs and ringing him back saying ‘f**k it, why not?’.
“I had about four and a half weeks to make 11st. I needed something to do, but during this mini-camp I realised I couldn’t be bothered doing it.
“I went into the fight telling myself that I will either get blown away like the rest of the Brits did or we take it round by round and see how it goes. I was in nowhere near the condition or mind frame that I should have been at when fighting someone with the highlight reel that he has.”
Yet, that obvious ill-preparation served as no excuse for Nurse, in fact it had the opposite effect, convincing the then 30-year-old that his lack of self-motivation and confidence in the boxing business landscape was a sign to call it a day.
“I was never one to make a lot of noise and preferred to just let things happen as they do. After the [Kerman] Lejarraga fight during lockdown, I knew I’d lost something that was needed in this game! I couldn’t be bothered cutting weight, my eating habits weren’t right, just a few things! I still loved to fight though.
“I also didn’t like the direction that boxing looked to be going, especially since nobody really knew what the situation was going to be like after Covid. So, I decided that I would slink off into retirement quietly.
“It seemed like boxing was all heading into one direction, and that if you weren’t a part of that stable or fitted the picture then you were going to struggle.
“I was never the guy that they rang and gave eight weeks’ notice for a fight, I wasn’t the guy they even rang. I worked my way into my position for English and British title shots, I had numerous opponents pulling out and I just had to wait and wait.
“So, the chances of me getting a fair shake, or even a call to face a prospect to get myself back where I would have wanted to be, would have been very unlikely.
“Don’t get me wrong, if KSI or Jake Paul wants to pay me to slap them about, then I’m game for it, but I won’t fight again now; I’ve had my time and done my bit. As much as I’d love to, it won’t happen.”
Still, despite admitting that his skills were not fully reflected in his achievements, Nurse is able to reflect back on his career fondly, not only due to his success at the domestic level but also safe with the knowledge that he was willing to take on all comers and that his lack of opportunity was through little fault of his own.
“I can only think of one fight that I turned down and one fight that I pulled out of after agreeing.
“I pulled out of fighting Chris Kongo; my body was f***ed and that is a tough fight if you’re not right. I’d fought most my career with injuries, and I wasn’t in a position to at that point.
“I turned down the Josh Taylor fight, they offered it us about three days after I’d faced [Jack] Catterall, I’d already decided I was moving up to 147lbs and I had no interest in going back into camp straight away.
“I never once asked my manager how much I was getting for a fight; I relished fighting and testing myself. I never turned down any other fight, and I was offered fights with Victor Postol, Austin Trout and Shawn Porter to name just a few.
“There was so much more [ability] that I never showed for whatever reason, I can’t pinpoint what it was. There are fighters and trainers out there who I’m pretty sure would agree there was so much more that I could have achieved but that’s life.
“There’s a part of me that feels that maybe because I’d done that much sparring with anyone and everyone, from being just 14 years old, that I had lost the edge by the time I got into the ring to fight. It was almost like the spider senses never tingled when they should have.
“It just seemed like it wasn’t meant to be, any talks of the jumping to the next level or facing opponents that would have given me that chance never came to fruition. It is what it is, and I did well ultimately, so I can honestly look back and be happy with what I achieved.”
Nevertheless, although proud of his accolades and the fearless mentality he portrayed throughout his career, Nurse explained that a part of his radio silence and absence from boxing media has been somewhat down to what has been a rough ride since hanging up the gloves.
That was until recently, as he now finds himself back in the gym, eyeing up a return to the sport outside of the ring, eager to help out his local community.
“It’s been a long, horrible and s**t time to be honest. I struggled with living a “normal life”, without sounding like I was a big star like Mayweather, I really struggled. I didn’t return to the boxing gym for a good two/three years.
“I spent some time lifting weights, which I enjoyed, but it didn’t give me the same feeling that the boxing gym did. I’ve realised now that I’m never going to find that high that boxing gave me, especially after fight night and the build-up before. [Becoming a] trainer is the logical next step though.
“I’ve eventually found my way back to the boxing gym now and the youngsters are all wanting me to help them and pass on my experience. I’m not 100 per cent ready to commit to the role right now, as I know how much it takes, and my girls are still young, so I don’t want to miss the time with them either.
“I don’t miss the diets, running in the morning, hot sweat baths etc. but cutting weight had its perks. You had an Instagram-able physique. I’m sick of the dad bod now, I can’t stick to a diet anymore due to having no real end goal. I’m still in good shape, fitness wise, I just don’t look like what I did.
“Eventually, I’d like to have my own gym and help the community, as well creating a safe space for kids, we had youth clubs back in my day, there is none of that now.”
As Nurse mentions, Huddersfield has quickly become a barren land in the world of boxing, not only because of his disappearance but also since the closure of the original Huddersfield Leisure Centre.
Once a popular northern hotspot for the small hall shows, the venue previously played host to fighters such as Tyson Fury, Carl Frampton and George Groves before it was knocked down in 2016 and replaced by a much-improved modern facility, but one that neglected the idea of a space to stage boxing events.
With interest in the sport dwindling in the town he calls home, Nurse has also placed blame onto the gyms in the area and implored them to work with one another in order to better manage talented amateurs, giving them the best chance of developing their full potential and succeeding as professionals.
“The biggest issue, and I know this first hand, is that none of the local gyms work together. The fighters don’t stick together which means you’re always going struggle to be able to hold a show locally due to tickets. There’s also the issue around venue now [that the sports centre is not an option]. The football stadium [John Smith’s Stadium] was looked at years ago, but the board knocked it back for one reason or another.
“The other thing, without being somewhat big-headed, is that there hasn’t been anyone since me to carry the torch.
“You’ve got several gyms with amateurs in Huddersfield, and they all turn pro in various other areas, that is due to the gyms having no working relationship with the pro set up in Huddersfield, there is a void – a void that I’d hope to change, once I get my a**e in gear.
“My Dad and all the amateur gyms have had problems in the past and this is partly why it’s so segmented in Huddersfield now. My Dad has always spoken of the West Yorkshire lot needing to team up and work together, but nothing has ever come of it.”
With work to do and a clear goal in mind, Nurse is keen to ensure that his experience inside of the ropes, and his knowhow of the industry outside of it, is not wasted on his hometown and finished off by revealing plans to open a gym of his own in the near future.
“Ideally, [in five years’ time] I will have my own gym opened up. To be honest, I’ve already got the business plan written up, I could just do with some big money backers!
“It wouldn’t just be a boxing gym; I’d want it to double up as a community hub and work with the kids. That’s something I enjoy doing actually, working with kids, especially the ones who get written off in school.”
Whether Nurse will ever be able to pass on the proverbial torch that seems close to setting itself alight remains to be seen. However, there is no man better placed than the fighting pride of the land itself, to save the desolate Huddersfield boxing scene.
