Willie Limond: 'Terrible day for Scottish sport' as former British champion dies aged 45

Josh Taylor, who was once the world champion, expressed his sadness over the death of Willie Limond at 45 years old. He believes that the world of boxing will not be the same without him, and that it will be less vibrant.

Limond, who previously held the title of the British and Commonwealth light-welterweight champion, was victorious in 42 out of his 48 professional fights spanning from 1999 to 2023. He managed to knock out 13 of his opponents, but after 2016 he only participated in three fights.

He had four defeats from battling talented fighters who achieved world championship titles. These fighters were Amir Khan, Anthony Crolla, Erik Morales, and Ricky Burns.

Taylor informed BBC Scotland that it was a dreadful day for Scottish sport.

The gentleman was a person with great personality, always cracking jokes, and a genuine good-hearted individual.

The loss is truly tragic. One of Scotland's most beloved individuals, especially in the field of boxing, has passed away. It is a devastating loss.

As one affair in the late 1990s, Limond was a football competitor and appeared in five games for Albion Rovers.

Throughout his noteworthy boxing profession, he was a champion for several titles including the British super-featherweight, light-welterweight, and lightweight titles. Additionally, he held the Commonwealth light-welterweight, WBU lightweight, and IBO Inter-Continental lightweight titles making him an esteemed and accomplished athlete.

On a social media post, Jake, his son, stated that his father "died during the early hours of the morning."

On Instagram, he expressed his admiration for the tenacity of the fighter who persisted for almost a duration of 10 days. He referred to him as a "warrior".

In the month of September, Limond faced off against his fellow countryman Burns. The fight was brought to an early end when the referee stopped it during the eighth round, due to the excessive bleeding from Limond's nose.

Afterwards, he declared that he would retire from the sport. However, he was scheduled to fight Joe Laws at Emirates Arena in Glasgow on May 3rd.

"I'm completely heartbroken. Willie simply aimed to improve the quality of life for his loved ones," shared Laws on Instagram.

"Dear Willie, let's meet at the entrance of heaven where they say the gates are pearly. We can catch up and have a good time. Great people always live on."

On 6th April, Limond was discovered unresponsive inside a car located in Coatbridge, North Lanarkshire. He was transported to Monklands Hospital but unfortunately passed away. The authorities have announced that there is no cause for suspicion regarding his death.

Limond had a memorable fight in 2007 for the Commonwealth lightweight championship against Khan, who was an up-and-coming unbeaten athlete and had won a silver medal in the Athens Olympics.

Khan had a challenging match with Limond, who had only lost one match before and had nine knockouts out of his 12 fights. Limond even managed to make Khan fall during the fight, but eventually lost due to a stoppage. This experience was a significant test for the young Khan in his early career as a professional fighter.

In round six, he managed to bring down Khan to the ground. However, he wasn't pleased with the decision of the delaying the count before declaring it as a knockout.

After some initial struggle, the fighter from Bolton gained dominance in the bout. Unfortunately, Limond had to withdraw from the match before the ninth round due to a fracturing of his jaw.

Limond emerged victorious with a WBU title and later faced four-weight world champion Morales in Mexico for a title match. However, in the sixth round, he sustained three knockdowns.

He was defeated by Crolla based on scorecards in his subsequent matchup for the UK title at the light-welterweight division. Nonetheless, he won three consecutive Commonwealth title bouts; the most recent one also awarded him the British championship as he beat Curtis Woodhouse in 2014.

Crolla, who was once a world champion, expressed his sorrow by using a heartbroken emoji and accompanied it with a recent photo of him and Limond. He mentioned that Limond was not only one of the best people he has met in boxing but also in life.

Woodhouse, who suffered a defeat from Limond at Braehead Arena in 2014, also showed his respect to the fighter on the social media platform X, which was previously known as Twitter.

The English individual expressed deep sorrow upon learning about the loss of Willie Limond, who was both a skilled boxer and an admirable person.

Even though we had an argument, we kept in contact and enjoyed each other's company. I am deeply saddened. May you rest in peace, my friend.

The St Andrew's Sporting Club had arranged to host the boxing match between Limond and Laws. The club expressed their grief on social media, stating that they were utterly shocked and saddened by the sudden demise of their dear companion, Willie Limond.

Willie was a renowned figure in the sport and his cheerful personality made a lasting impression on all of us. It is with deep sadness that we bid him farewell.

We are thinking about and sending our prayers to Jake, Drew, Macy, and the rest of the Limond family during this time.