Victorious Clarke praises coach Davis following Westminster terror attack

Clarke and fellow members of the British Lionhearts boxing team were attending a community event at the Houses of Parliament when the attack occurred on Wednesday. But Davis told Clarke to focus on his World Series bout with Italy’s Guido Vianello, which he won on a split decision at London’s York Hall.

However, the fighter admitted what he’d witnessed one day earlier made sport an irrelevance.

He said: "If we can’t get in there and do our jobs after what we saw, how do the rest of the people who were there go on with their lives?

"Police who have lost a colleague were working today and families who have lost loved ones have got to continue with their lives too.

"We were the lucky ones. I said my little bit in there, I said rest in peace. I don’t need closure, the families who have to continue with no mother or father, they’re the ones that it’s impacted, not me."

Clarke was knocked down for only the second time in his career by his powerful rival but, in truth, always looked like he would edge the scorecards.

And he claims his sparing work with world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua and Joe Joyce, the Olympic silver medallist, is sharpening his skills for challenges to come.

"I wasn’t quite at the races, no excuses, I’m trained better than that, I’m a better fighter than that," he added. "I’ve got to improve and be more switched on because I made too hard work of that.

"I’ll go back, have a rest and get back in the gym next week. I’ll go through this with the coaches and I’ll go through my mistakes, I’ll take that learning into my next performance.

"I’m getting better and I couldn’t ask for better people to be around in the gym.

"That wasn’t vintage Frazer Clarke but we all have off days. I came through, I got knocked down and I got back up again, that’s what I do - we’re made of proper stuff where I come from, true grit."

The Lionhearts won all five bouts against the Italia Thunder and now top their group heading into a home clash with France next month, keeping them on track to improve on last year’s final defeat against Cuba.

Sportsbeat 2017