John Joe Nevin is more determined than ever to become a world champion after admitting he went 'off the rails' for a period.
The Mullingar man was a two-time Olympian and had the world at his feet when he turned professional in 2014.
But an incident with his cousin in April of that year saw Nevin sustain two broken legs after he was beaten with a golf club. The boxer admits that it was an injury that sent him into a spiral he struggled to recover from.
He said: "One minute you are top of the world and the next minute some doctor sitting in a chair with a suit on him is telling you, 'Go home, you are never going to fight again.'
"But no one was going to drag myself out of whatever swing I went into, it was down to myself to bring myself back and show these guys that I still have it and can be a world champion.
"One of the reasons I want to come back is to go to that hospital and ask for that doctor and say, 'I thought you said I wouldn't fight again?'
"But after what happened with my legs and things, it did mess up my mind for a little bit.
"I did go off the rails. No one put me off the rails. I had a few drunken incidents but thank god I'm away from all that stuff now.
"It's not something I'm proud of, but it's something I'll learn from."
It has been a stop-start career in the pro ranks for Nevin who is now 31.
He last fought in November 2019 and is a long way down the world rankings despite being undefeated in 14 fights.
But he hopes signing a management deal with Billy Joe Saunders will get his career on the right track again.
First up is a bout with Englishman Shaun Cooper (10-2-0) in Bolton on April 17.
He told the Green Blood Boxing podcast: "Billy Joe has offered me two step-up fights to get that ring rust off and then push on for that world title fight.
"He has mentioned one that has always been on the back of my mind since I went pro - a rematch with Luke Campbell in the pro game.
"But there's so many big names and big fights out there for me. You've got Carl Frampton, you've got Oscar Valdez, who I've beaten in the Olympics, Joseph Diaz is another. I'm fresh as a daisy to get fighting."
Nevin is also dreaming of getting a slot on the undercard of Saunders' world title fight with Mexican Canelo Alvarez in May.
He added: "I'd hope to get on it. I'd love to get on it. But I can't look too far ahead and look past this opponent [Cooper] first."
