Warning: This article contains details some readers may find distressing.
At the centre of Conor Benn’s heavily tattooed torso is a large cross and at the bottom of his stomach he has the words ‘Fear God’ inked on his skin.
Since childhood, Benn has been a devoted Christian but his commitment to the faith has endured some serious tests.
Benn moved to Mallorca, Spain with his parents and siblings as a young child, spending 12 years there.
From the outside his life had all the trappings of luxury but the reality was much different.
“I lived in a beautiful home – a beautiful mansion – and went to private school,” Benn told BBC Sport.
“It was very heavily Christian, very religious. School was very extreme and church was very extreme.”
“Christmas was blasphemy so we couldn’t celebrate it,” he added. “Everything was just a lot.”
Benn, 29, attended a fundamentalist Christian school, and was told the “world was coming to an end”.
His parents had fully signed up to the evangelical life and the experience left Benn with scars that cut far deeper than those he has sustained inside the boxing ring.
Around the age of 12, the school believed Benn was “demon-possessed”.
“It was very traumatic,” Benn said.
“You were waking up in the morning and not knowing whether the anti-Christ was here.
“As a kid you’re easily influenced by people in these positions or power.
“Looking back – because I don’t often reflect on it – you think it’s pretty evil.”
As Benn prepares for a rematch against Chris Eubank Jr on Saturday and attempts to avenge the only defeat on his professional record, he tells BBC Sport about his memories of the church and how he eventually forgave his father, Nigel Benn.
