‘Throw me back to Roman times and I’d have been in the Colosseum.’
Lewis fell in love with Scottish football casual culture as a teenager.
An Edinburgh father-of-three and former Hibs casual has opened on becoming a champion professional bare knuckle boxer in his 20s. Born in the Eastern General in Leith, Lewis Knox, is a Leither through and through.
The 29-year-old attended Lorne Primary before going on to Leith Academy. The Hibs fanatic grew up alongside his mum, Nicky Trench, and his brother Reiss.
After leaving school at 16 to fund his love for designer clothes and the hooligan pub culture, he took a job at Virgin Active. He has held down a variety of roles from landscape labouring to working for the council, and now with a sofa delivery company
But Lewis’ true passion lies with sport. He turned down a chance for a scholarship playing football in Canada when he met his fiance, Robynn Flett, 29, at the age of 19.
The couple are parents to Noah, 11, Juniper, seven and Adelaide, one. In his mid-20s Lewis feared his dream of becoming a professional athlete was over as his promising football career wound down – that was until he discovered the world of bare knuckle boxing at the O2 arena in London.
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Scottish featherweight bare knuckle boxing champion Lewis Knox at UK Elite Warriors Gym in Restalrig, Edinburgh.(Image: REACH PLC)
“My childhood memories were of my mum working a lot so I was with my grandparents”, he said.
“I’d help my gran open up the Old Junction bar in the morning and grew up in that environment. It’s not an experience many kids would get but I had a really happy childhood.
“My grandad, Robert Trench, was a decent amateur boxer, and his best mate, my uncle Bash, helped to run the Leith Vic boxing club. I never started boxing until I was about eight or nine but to be honest my real love was football.
“I played with Leith Athletic for years before going on to play junior Lower League at Coldstream and Hawick. I was offered the chance to go for a scholarship in Canada to play at 19 but then I met my partner and fell in love.
Lewis played at a high level in junior football but was unable to realise his dream of becoming a footballer.
“It was always my dream to become a footballer but it wasn’t to be.”
Lewis grew up in a sporting family, his mum, who he labels as his inspiration, was a talented footballer and was crowned Miss Scotland Body Builder back in 2006 before appearing on the hit show Gladiators. His father was also a bodybuilder and keen kickboxer.
“I was never one for trouble, I mucked about with good and bad groups, just focusing on my football but when I left school I became involved in the football casual scene,” he said. “I was introduced to it by a mate and I just loved the culture, the music and the clothes, I grew attached to it.
“I felt I belonged there. It was difficult juggling it with the football but when I went back to amateur, most of my games were on a Sunday, so I could go to Hibs games.
Lewis Knox hopes to be given a UK featherweight title shot in 2026. (Image: REACH PLC)
“I remember one weekend I had a Scottish cup game in Granton at Marine drive, I rushed home, got changed and was up fighting with Raith Rovers in the town in the space of two hours.
“You had comradery and togetherness in the old school casual scene. Dressing in nice gear, heading down the pub with your mates and waiting on a phone call from another firm.
“I realised I really enjoyed a roll around and have been in some scenarios, you never knew what was going to happen, there was a real buzz. I’ve been all over, through to Glasgow, up to Dundee and Aberdeen and even down to Carlisle.
Lewis with his daughter Juniper.
“People think it is stupid and I guess it can be at times, but whether you had a fight or not, it was just good to be with your mates. When I started my family though, I realised I had too much to lose.”
By chance Lewis and his brother were offered the opportunity to take part in a charity boxing match and the two leapt at the opportunity. As always, Lewis threw himself vigorously into the training and soon developed an itch for combat sports.
“I always fought, just illegally,” he said. “I did a class at the Rick Young Black Belt Academy and then ended up training with Easthouses before having my first amateur boxing bout against a guy from Manchester.
Lewis caught the bug for bare knuckle boxing after attending an event in London.
“I packed in the football and decided to put my all into boxing fighting at various shows. During that time I was invited down to a bare knuckle event in London – BKB. I was amazed and thought I want to give this a go.
“In 2022 I got contacted by a guy from Bad to the Bone who asked me to send some videos of me fighting and he said he’d sign me up on a professional contract. I had my first fight in November 2023, against Rafael Polotski.
“He had over 30 fights in K1 but this was his first bare knuckle fight. At that time I’d only had four boxing matches but I put him down in the first round with a right uppercut.
“I then thought I’m alright at this. My next fight was in February 2024 with a Leeds fighter, he got the home decision but we both cut each other up badly. Both my hands were broken, I had two gashes under my eyes and was left with two scars.”
Lewis has suffered broken hands, cracked ribs and deep cuts during his time in the ring.
The featherweight fighter then had a shot at the Scottish title, marking a meteoric rise, in the Spring of 2024. He faced Ronnie Gattie from Bingham, who he knocked out in the second round.
Lewis’ dream was to see the world and perform in front of thousands and to a televised audience. And in 2025, his dreams came true, as he became the first ever foreign fighter to box in a legal bare knuckle boxing event in Australia before going on to sign with BKFC – Conor McGregor’s promotion.
“I made my debut in BKFC against Robbie Brown, one of the toughest lads in the UK, he’s done it all,” he said. “4,000 people watched on DAZN, it was a proper battle, but I knocked him out in the fourth – although he did give me a b*****d black eye.
Lewis discovered bare knuckle boxing in his mid-20s. (Image: REACH PLC)
“I’ve put my body through it, I want to get to the very top of BKFC and get a big fight in America.”
Lewis, who trains out of UK Elite Warriors Gym, is now ranked third in the UK and 16th in the world at featherweight. He believes one more fight should land him a UK title fight and bring him closer to his goal of world domination.
“It is tough,” he said. “But I’ve watched my mum achieve amazing things as a single parent with two kids.
Lewis in action inside the ring.
“Just because you have kids it doesn’t mean you cannot pursue your dream or your goal in life. My missus helps with the kids a lot and is a rock when I have 12 week camps.
“I do miss out on a lot of stuff. But after all the sacrifice, my family gets to see me fight and they love it, the kids just think ‘wow.’
“I have an enjoyment of the intensity, the rawness of bare knuckle and being in that old gladiator style arena. In Scotland we all come from clans who would kill, we have that animalistic tendency.
Lewis was crowned Scottish featherweight champion.
“I chase the buzz and adrenaline. I never get nervous, I feel so comfortable, throw me back to Roman times and I’d have been in the Colosseum.
“I grew up in a council estate in Leith and I’m achieving something people only dream of and there is even more to come.”