Las Vegas is regarded as the home of boxing, and London has held a handful of raucous nights over the past decade, but Cardiff boasts a boxing tapestry as rich as any other city in the world.
From hometown heroes Freddie Welsh and Jimmie Driscoll slugging it out at the American Roller Rink in 1910 to Ronnie James taking on boxing great Ike Williams at Ninian Park in 1946, the Welsh capital has been home to the sport's greatest battles over the past century.
More recently, fighters hailing from outside of Wales have crossed the Severn Bridge to dance under the lights in Cardiff. Lennox Lewis and Frank Bruno contested the heavyweight title in 1993, while Anthony Joshua defeated Carlos Takam at the Principality Stadium in 2017.
Cardiff boasts a rich boxing tapestry and has hosted a number of big fights over the years
Yet no fighter has quite captured the hearts and minds of the adoring Welsh public more than Joe Calzaghe.
The Italian Dragon's considerable talent meant that the eyes of the boxing world were fixated on Cardiff, where he became a huge name on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean following his 2007 win over Mikkel Kessler.
Wales has been yearning for a hero of Calzaghe's ilk to come to the fore once again and next Saturday night, just across town at the Motorpoint Arena, Liam Williams will look to inspire the masses against Chris Eubank Jr.
This Rhondda native has always been a fighter. From the age of 9, Williams took up amateur boxing and was briefly a roofer in the valleys before turning professional at 18 years old.
Joe Calzaghe captured the hearts and minds of the Welsh masses during his glittering career
The Italian Dragon was lured away from the Welsh capital to the United States after 2007
'I enjoyed being with good people but it was never great money,' he told The Guardian. 'It was hard work in all sorts of weather but no one has it easy in Rhondda.
'People say it's a tough place but for me it's a very tight community. People there will tell you that, whatever I achieve, I've not changed.'
Boasting an impressive amateur record and a blistering start to his professional career, Williams was earmarked to compete with big names from a young age. In fact, he came across Eubank Jr for the first time at the age of 24, on a night that had near-tragic consequences.
March 26, 2016, saw Williams staring down Eubank Jr from the other side of the ring, yet he wasn't going head-to-head with the Englishman that night. Rather, he was in the corner for his good friend and training partner, Nick Blackwell.
