Cyrus Pattinson couldn’t see straight.
One of the most fan-friendly boxers on the domestic scene, last year Pattinson was coming off back-to-back thrillers, beating Chris Jenkins and losing to Conah Walker.
But after a sparring session in December, he found his vision wasn’t lining up. He struggled home, the image he was seeing in front of him jumping from one eye to the other.
He had to go to hospital and the scan showed trauma behind his eye.
It didn’t just prevent him competing, he couldn’t do any exercise of any sort.
Pattinson fights on Friday night in front of his home fans in Newcastle (Photo: PA Images)
“I was thinking is this going to heal?” Pattinson told Sky Sports. “I was having to take time off training, time off sparring, and then it wasn’t healing.
“I was thinking is this even going to go back to normal? I had to wear a patch for months. I didn’t know when I could get the patch off.
“I didn’t think I was going to box again… It puts your head in a massive spiral.”
The psychological impact was enormous.
“Training’s always been a crutch. I think any physical exercise for people is a magnificent thing that helps detox and destress you from all of life’s worries and stresses. So once that release is taken away from you, you end up sick,” he explained.
“It’s frightening for your mental health as well. Boxing, training and exercise has been a massive thing for me all my life. When that’s taken away… It’s like a car without wheels. You need it to carry on and deal with your life.
“Your purpose has been taken. That’s all you’ve done all your life,” he continued. “It’s my calling at the end of the day. It’s something that I’m really good at and I’ve done all my life and it’s a massive part of my identity.”
Eventually however he did recover. He could resume his career and on Friday night he will box in front of his home supporters in Newcastle.
Pattinson is a popular ticket seller
“There was so much that went on in between but thankfully six months down the line I got the all-clear, my eye had returned to full health. It was just soft tissue damage. So it wasn’t my retina, which obviously I was praying it wasn’t, it wasn’t my orbital, which would be another career-ender,” he said.
“I made a full recovery, got my licence back. That was my worry as well.
“This has been the hardest fight of my life,” he added. “This has been from the minute I wake up till the minute I go to bed, every day. No anaesthetic to numb the pain or to slow your mind down. You deal with it every day. There’s probably not really anyone that knows the full ins and outs of where you’ve been mentally, spiritually and emotionally.”
To have his career restored, he feels he’s got his life back.
“You appreciate it so much more,” he continued. “You get this new love for it. It feels like it’s my debut all over again.
“A fighter is someone who gets beat and comes back from defeat and becomes victorious again.”
Conah Walker defeated Pattinson in another battle
He hasn’t lost his support either. Pattinson remains a ticket-seller. “That’s been a massive eye-opener,” he said. “I’ve been out for a year. People don’t know I exist anymore, I’ve heard nothing from anyone… 100 tickets, they went in the first day, then it was another 100 tickets and they went in the next three days and we’re on 300 plus tickets and that’s a lot of money.
“And it’s been people from far and wide, up to Edinburgh, Scotland, Berwick, my hometown [Alnwick in Northumberland], Newcastle, south, everyone’s coming to show support and love. Especially after the time that I’ve had, after a nightmare of a year and it’s just amazing to feel like I’ve still got that support base.
“I’m just happy that I can be part of the reason for bringing people together.”
He’s not going to think of title fights or targets for 2025 just yet. “I’m not living in the future of ‘I want this, I want that.’ I’m just completely in the present at the minute,” he said.
“I’m just so grateful for where I am. Because I’ve prayed and prayed and prayed every day for the last 12 months or however long it’s been to get back to where I am now.
“It’s been a long hard road, but I’m just so grateful for being where I am right now.”
