The Ring has sadly been informed that Hall of Fame boxing journalist Colin Hart, 89-years-old, passed away on Saturday.

Hart, born in 1935, became a fan of boxing at an early age - after being introduced to the sport by his brothers and father.

He began his career in journalism with the Daily Herald in 1958, but started covering boxing on a full-time basis in 1964.

Hart began his well-known run with the current version of The Sun in 1969 - and the first bout he covered for the paper was the first bout between heavyweight legends Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier at Madison Square Garden on March 8, 1971.

After 31 years he retired in 2000, but returned to serve as The Sun’s boxing columnist and continued to write articles on a regular basis - with his byline shining bright in the paper less than three weeks ago.

He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2013.