Nelson (right) trains WBO super-featherweight champion Ricky Burns

By Jim Black

Billy Nelson is the central character in a boxing fairytale.

Trainer to world champion Ricky Burns, Nelson has enjoyed a meteoric rise to prominence over the past two-and-a-half years.

Yet, at the beginning of 2008, Glasgow-born Nelson did not have a gym to call his own as he sought to establish himself as an independent operator.

Having parted company with Peter Harrison, who he assisted during Scott Harrison's reign as world featherweight champion, the 42-year-old cornerman from Govan worked for a time training fighters at a gym he rented in Newarthill.

Yet, some may wonder how Nelson has managed to make it this far in the fight game, given his lack of pedigree as a boxer.

He readily admits that prowess in the ring was limited after he was introduced to the sport at the age of 14 by a pal who had risen to the level of British schoolboy champion.

Nelson was encouraged to attend a local gym where he was, in turn, introduced to Peter Harrison.

He recalled: "I fought as a middleweight and had a dozen or so fights as an amateur. I also sparred with several leading professionals, but I decided against turning pro.

"It wasn't so much a case that I didn't consider myself good enough, but I was young and newly married and my first wife didn't want me to box for a living.

"But I followed Peter from gym to gym and my loyalty to him was rewarded when he asked me to be his assistant at the same time as Scott turned pro.

"That was a very exciting period in my life as Scott quickly progressed through the ranks to world champion and it is a time I will always look back on with pride and satisfaction.

"But Peter and I eventually decided to go our separate ways, and, having learned a great deal working with him, I was keen to set up on my own.

"That was much easier said than done, of course, especially as I didn't have an established base to work from.

"But while I was at Newarthill, one of my friends suggested that I would be better trying to find suitable premises nearer my home in Stepps.

"He told me about a Scout hut that was lying derelict at the end of the street where I live and suggested that it might serve my need.

"I had passed the building three or four times a day when I was walking my dog but hadn't even noticed it because it was hidden away behind a high hedge.

"So I made a point of having a good look at what was on offer and decided there and then to follow my instincts.

"I contacted the owners and they agreed to give me a 25-year lease. But that was only the start.

"It required a great deal of renovation, but with the help and support of others we knocked it into shape and the Fighting Scots gym opened for business in June 2008."

The rest, as they say, is history. Nelson now trains a string of established fighters and up-and-coming stars, including featherweight John Simpson, super-featherweight Michael Roberts, middleweight David Brophy and lightweight Santino Caruana.

Commonwealth Games semi-finalist Stephen Simmons is the latest recruit and Nelson is optimistic that the fledgling cruiserweight will turn out to be a valuable addition to his stable.

But Burns is the real star of the show after progressing from Commonwealth champion to world champion, by dint of his stunning WBO super-featherweight title win over Roman Martinez in October.

"Having a world champion this early in my career really is a dream come true," said Nelson. "If someone had told me three years ago that I would be training a world champion so soon I might well have questioned their sanity.

"Prior to coming to me, Ricky trained basically as an amateur and his attitude had to change, otherwise he would not have won any titles, in my opinion.

"Within two weeks of him starting with me we sat down and had a conversation and he immediately began adapting to the changes I had suggested.

"That is not a criticism of his previous trainer, Rab Bannan at the Barn Club in Coatbridge, because Rab deserves the credit for giving Ricky a firm grounding in boxing.

"But to be successful as a professional you need to train with other pros of a good standard.

"Personally, I believe Ricky can remain at the top for as long as he wishes, given his level of fitness combined with his great attitude to training, his disciplined lifestyle, application and ability.

"But I am very proud of all my boxers, for the hard work they put in and their willingness to listen and learn.

"There is another very important member of my team - my wife, Rita. I spend 25 hours a week at the gym in addition to my job as a residential social worker and she has had to make a lot of sacrifices.

"Rita is my rock and without her support it would be impossible for me to do this."

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