Joe Gallagher has been involved in plenty of major nights over the course of his career.

The 2015 Ring Magazine Trainer of the Year has spent much of his time at the sharp end of the sport and trained a host of world champions.

In recent years, he has been in the corner of multi-weight world champion Natasha Jonas MBE, and reinvigorated the career of two-weight world title holder and top heavyweight contender Lawrence Okolie.

He has also been a frequent visitor to Saudi Arabia where his fighter Mohammed Alakel has become a regular on major Riyadh Season cards and he is the head of the Mike Tyson Boxing Gym.

But away from the bright lights, Gallagher has always remained a fixture on the small hall circuit and travels the North West with his crop of young fighters, preparing them for their moment on the big stage.

Ten days ago, Liverpool's Mikie Tallon (8-0, 1 KO) scored the first stoppage victory of his young career when he walked Jemsi Kibazange into a perfectly timed right hand.

The 20 year-old junior flyweight is managed by Jonas and has really begun to find his feet.

Before stopping Kibazange, Tallon had dropped his previous two opponents and is beginning to forge a reputation as a ruthless operator.

"That's why I gave him the name "The Omen" when he came to the gym," Gallagher told The Ring.

"When he came in the gym with Natasha saying he wanted to turn pro I said to her, 'Take him back to school, he's not ready.' He has an angelic face and features but in the ring he is a little bit of savage. His record doesn't suggest that at the moment but like I say to the kids, it's not about knocking kids out at the moment. It’s about learning their craft, using the rounds, getting the experience, cutting the ring off and getting rounds under their belts.”

Gallagher likes his young fighters to use the formative stages of their careers to put into practice the lessons they learn in the gym.

Stoppage victories obviously grab attention and apply a gloss finish to a fighter's record but if they come, they are a byproduct of doing things properly.

By the time they graduate to major shows and have to perform in front of big audiences, Gallagher's fighters are as ready as they could be and are used to thinking and reacting under live fire.

Fighters can find themselves at title level very quickly in the lower weight divisions and although Tallon has plenty of time on his side, Gallagher would like him to get as much experience as possible and hone his undoubted talent before stepping up.

"If you start knocking everyone out all the time, journeymen will become more expensive because people won't want to fight you so just gain the experience. I'd rather get you to 10 or 11-0 with 60, 80 rounds under your belt instead of 15," he said.

"I said look at the [Anthony] Crolla's and people like that. They weren't stopping people coming through but when it came to titles that's when it mattered and that's when you need the cutting edge.

"Mikie does show me that he does have that temperament, that nastiness in there and it will come out when it needs to.

"Mikey can start off at light flyweight and grab a couple of titles there before his body starts growing and developing, then we can move up to eight stone. I've always looked at Mikey with his weight and his technique and style wise and said he's like my little [Erik] Morales but I do feel there's two or three weights for him to go through and titles to be won at."

On July 5th, two more of Gallagher's young fighters will see action in Manchester. Sion Yaxley will return from a 14-month layoff whilst undefeated junior middleweight Clark Smith (7-0, 1 KO) takes the test that every young fighter around his weight must pass and fight the experienced Jordan Grannum.

Manchester's Smith has been touted as a fighter to watch since making his debut almost three years ago but has been hampered by bad luck and injury. Slowly but surely, things have begun to turn for the 24-year-old and next weekend's fight will be his second appearance of 2025.

Clark bears a striking resemblance to undisputed super middleweight champion Saul "Canelo" Alvarez and he goes into his upcoming fight buoyed by a recent trip to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia where he got to spend some invaluable time with the Mexican great ahead of his victory over William Scull.

"Clark's a kid who was a good amateur. He won numerous titles - as did Mikey, they've both got outstanding pedigree - but he's been a bit of a stop start, not much momentum. Clark has suffered some really bad injuries," Gallagher said.

"People always say - like I do - that he looks like Canelo. He went to Riyadh last time out for Canelo's fight and everyone thought he was his brother. We watched him train, Canelo did too and send him a good luck video for his pro debut.

"Team Canelo are making him some boots like Saul now so all that type of thing is inspiring, helping him and we just need to get some momentum now. He's out July 5th and then we'd like to get him out in September and if we can get three or four fights under his belt without cuts or a bad shoulder, we just need a bit of momentum."

Although injuries have restricted Smith’s progress, Gallagher has recognised a couple essential qualities in the way he has dealt with the frustrations he has had to endure.

"He's shown desire and the dedication during all these injuries," he said. "He's not left the gym, he's gone doing strength and conditioning or something else in the meantime until he gets back boxing. There's no question about his dedication and desire. Now, we need to have some momentum, slowly build and start moving forward.”

The Manchester boxing scene is currently simmering away nicely. The massive new Co-op Live Arena has quickly become a popular venue for big fights but the city is waiting for the local fighter - or fighters - capable of grabbing the public's attention and selling large numbers of tickets to emerge.

Gallagher believes his latest recruit Zelfa Barrett (32-3, 18 KOs) still has the star quality and talent to become a headline attraction if promoted correctly whilst 2024 Olympian and undefeated cruiserweight Pat Brown (2-0, 2 KOs) is being groomed to take over as the city's face of boxing.

Gallagher is sure that Smith is one of a number of talented Manchester fighters who may currently be operating under the radar but will help the city regain its status as a real hotbed in years to come.

"I just think Manchester's full of hot young talent at the moment," Gallagher said.

"You see Niall Brown, Bobby Faulkner, Clark Smith. There's some very good fighters that in two or three years' time will be carrying the flag for Manchester.

"Clark's fought on Sky and Channel 5 but then straight back on small hall shows. We've just got to keep busy, active and before you know it you'll be mandatory for an English title or mandatory for a British and would have learnt your craft by the time you've got there.

"I think boxing's in a very good state in Manchester at the moment and I think it will become the capital of British boxing again in a few years."