WORLD champion boxer Jim Watt MBE has helped raise a staggering £7,000 in a bid to honour Scottish boxing legend star Benny Lynch.

The 70-year-old lightweight champion sat down with 120 fans to share stories of his life in the ring, and wowed the crowds with his musical talents, playing guitar and singing, at a special one-off event to raise cash for the project.

A raffle and auction wrapped up the evening at Smiths Hotel in Kirkintilloch, however, the sporting legend held his fans’ attention for a little too long –speaking for more than two hours despite planning to spend just 60 minutes on stage.

But, it was all worth it for the athlete, who helped bring in £7,050 to the cause.

He told the Evening Times: “We raised more than we had hoped so we’re quite pleased about that. The fund is over the £40,000 mark now so that’s got to be plenty.

“The committee, who are putting it all together, contacted me about three years ago and I thought it was a good idea.

“He’s the first Scottish world champion and a great athlete. All too often, the stories about him are the issues he faced.”

Benny Lynch died at just 33 after a battle with alcohol addiction.

The Gorbals-born boxer rose to fame when he beat out Benjamin Gan, known as Small Montana, to the flyweight world championship in 1937.

It’s yet to be determined where the statue, which will require a planning application to go before Glasgow City Council, will be erected, with the likes of the Gorbals and Glasgow Green in the running.

But, Jim says regardless of where it goes, it’s important for Glaswegians to remember the iconic athlete.

He said: “If you go into George Square there are all these statues of famous people but most people don’t know who they all are – everyone knows who Benny Lynch is.

“It might not inspire young people to go into the sport, because they’re inspired by the champions they can see, but he is the man who inspired us.

“He deserves to be remembered. There are lots of lesser heroes than him being remembered and he was a real sporting hero.”

The Remembering Benny Lynch statue campaign group is now understood to begin planning for a possible statue design and location, with hopes of erecting the monument within the next few years.