The first thing Tunde Ajayi did when Anthony Yarde walked into the Peacock Gym to enquire about training under him was tell the 23-year-old to come back when he wins something.

In 2013, the east London-based coach was inundated with fighters, keen to work with the man who had brought the so-called "Mayweather pads" back to England's capital after spending time studying in the Las Vegas Gym.

Yarde, as it happened, was one of them but so busy was Ajayi that he did not have time for an amateur he had never even heard of. "Come back when you win something" would be the words that kickstarted everything.

That summer, the kid from Forest Gate headed up the hill to Alexandra Palace and won the prestigious Haringey Box Cup, knocking out all his opponents en route to the gold. Given how rare such a feat is in the 18-year history of the tournament, Ajayi suddenly knew he might have a talent on his hands.

"Will you train me now?" Yarde asked, medal in hand. Their first session was the very next morning at 5.

Since then, the pair have been inseparable as Yarde turned professional and became one of British boxing's most established attractions. He has had 30 fights, winning 27 but losing in his two world title attempts.

Today in Riyadh, Yarde and Ajayi, or "uncs" as his fighter calls him, will attempt to make it third time lucky when they face WBC champion David Benavidez atop the bill on The Ring IV: Night of the Champions.

"This time it just feels right," Ajayi tells The Ring. "This feels like a situation where everyone is lining up to talk about the other kid but we just come and gatecrash the whole thing.

"We're still rolling up how we want, not trying to speak like we went to Cambridge University. We are exactly the same now as we were right back at the start. I have said from the very beginning that everything is timing, this time it just feels right."

When Yarde lost to Sergey Kovalev in his first world title shot in 2019, there were calls for him to sever ties with Ajayi and find a new coach. Those voices grew ever louder when Artur Beterbiev stopped him in the eighth round of their clash four years later.

But Yarde, an archetype in loyalty in a game where it comes at a premium, has always stood by the trainer who sent him away 12 years ago.

"I think consistency has always been the key for us," Ajayi says. "Show me that our path together has been anything other than spiritual. You couldn't write this, the way it has happened.

"The relationship that both of us have developed and grown over the years, the things that we've overcome, the battles outside the ring, the legal battles, the personal battles, everything that comes with it.

"For two people, trainer and fighter, who are not father and son, to stick together through all of this shows our strength. Then for it all to culminate in this fight right here, come on man, this is something special.

"I think we are an example for a lot of people that if you stick by your guns, if you truly believe in yourself and what you're doing, there's just nothing or nobody other than the invisible force that can stop this. This isn’t a movie, this is real life for us."

Yarde, 34, has cut a relaxed figure during the build-up. This could be his third and final chance to win a world title but, if there is any pressure on him, he has not shown it.

"That’s just Ant," Ajayi adds. "He has always been a humble person.

"I tell his mum regularly that I don't know what carrot juice or Guinness punch he was drinking when he was a kid but your son is one in a million.

"I've not come across anyone my whole life where I've never heard him say anything bad about anybody, ever. It just doesn’t make sense. He's just a beautiful person.

"His life so far could not have happened to anyone better and I just think he’s getting his rewards for everything that he’s putting in. When he wins this world title, nobody will have ever deserved it more.

"And when you talk about 'come back when you win something'... This is the only thing that's left for him to win."