Luke: Dad died in big fight build up

“Sometimes when I’m upset like that I will just stand there and I will want to take punishment because I’m angry,” he said. “I will just want to fight someone.

“I was waiting till that first spar, if I was going to start crying behind my gloves and wanting someone to punish me. But if I went in there with a clear head and calm I would go on with it.”

Campbell passed his test and, with long-time coach Stevie Smith by his side, he ploughed on. Nobody in boxing knew of his agony except Smith, former trainer Jorge Rubio and ex-amateur team-mate Anthony Joshua, who he told in a FaceTime chat a few days before the fight.

Yet Campbell not only came through the fight, he nearly beat Linares, losing a split decision after climbing off the canvas.

The London 2012 Olympic bantamweight gold medallist had been told the devastating news by his brother Chris while he was at his Miami training base as Hurricane Irma closed in on the Florida coast.

There were lots of tears but there was little time to think as he jetted to LA to complete his camp.

Most would have been on the next available flight back to the UK, but Campbell couldn’t walk away from knowing his 58-year-old dad’s desire was to see him win a world title.

“He always said to me, ‘I ain’t going anywhere until you’ve won a world title’,” said Campbell. “That got me a little bit. Now I have to win a world title for him.”

Campbell’s route back began in May with a routine win over Troy James and he has now teamed up with trainer Shane McGuigan in a bid to deliver on that promise.