Former British champion boxer Willie Limond dead at 45

Limond was due to make a return to the ring in a few weeks

The Scot was found unresponsive in his car last week and had been in a critical condition in hospital. The Mirror reports that he passed away on Monday (April 15).

Limond had a successful career in the ring, winning 42 of his 48 fights, with 13 of those victories coming via stoppage.

During his 24-year career, he won the European super-featherweight title, the Commonwealth lightweight and super-lightweight titles, and the British super-lightweight title.

Limond's death was announced in a post on Instagram by his son Jake. He wrote that his dad had passed away at around 3am.

He said: "He fought on for near enough 10 days. Warrior. Love you da."

He had only fought three times since 2016 but was due to face Joe Laws in his comeback fight in Glasgow on May 3.

Paying tribute, Laws said in a post on social media that he was "devastated" by the news of Limond's passing.

He shared a link to a GoFundMe page he had set up to raise money for the late boxer's family.

Tributes have come in from across the sport, with his former opponent Curtis Woodhouse saying: "Absolutely devastated to hear the news of the passing of Willie Limond, a great fighter and a great man. We stayed in touch after our fight and always had a laugh together. Absolutely gutted. Rest In Peace champ."

St. Andrews Boxing club posted on Facebook: "Everyone at St Andrew’s Sporting Club are shocked and deeply saddened at the loss of our friend, Willie Limond. Willie was not only a legend of the sport, but an infectious character who will be greatly missed by us all. Our thoughts and prayers are with Jake, Drew, Macy and the rest of the Limond family at this time."

Limond last fought in his compatriot Ricky Burns in September with the fight being stopped at the end of the eight round because of excessive blood from his nose.

During his career, Limond had also fought Amir Khan in a Commonwealth lightweight title fight in 2007.