Denzel Bentley was supposed to be fighting for a world title. Instead, he was close to becoming a delivery driver.
Having ended 2024 on a high by winning the British middleweight title for a third time and adding the European crown to his collection, Bentley, 31, had every reason to believe a world title fight would be next.
Meetings with promoter Queensberry offered Bentley hope until fight cards were announced and promises were broken.
During his time in the wilderness, Londoner Bentley was left with a dwindling bank account – leading him to look at new ways to earn money to stay afloat.
Without a fight purse to rely on, a chance conversation with his cousin almost saw Bentley taking up the role of a delivery driver.
“After a year out, I thought I needed to do something,” Bentley told BBC Sport.
“I’m not bad with my money and was able to hold myself up to that point but it was starting to bite. My cousin said download the Amazon app and you can get a zero-hour contract. It was an app where you could check in and see if there was delivery work in your area.
“I downloaded it and signed in but there were no jobs in my area. I remember always refreshing and checking but there were no jobs in my area – that’s the only reason I didn’t do it.”