The two-time world heavyweight champion, his wife Paris, their three daughters and four sons, all upped sticks for the Isle of Man last year and have not yet returned.

Meanwhile, their football club, who once competed in the third tier of English football, have suffered back-to-back relegations in the past two years and will start next season in the National League North.

But Alex “The Villain” MacMillan is determined to become the town’s new sporting hero and believes his new three-year deal with Zuffa Boxing, which will place him front and center on Sky Sports, will give Morecambe something else to shout about.

“Tyson and his family are a big loss to the place,” MacMillan tells The Ring. “Maybe they will come back one day but they haven’t yet.

“Then add in Morecambe’s second relegation and that has just made it even worse in a sporting sense. It feels like Morecamebe is disappearing a bit.

“So it feels like it’s up to me to step up now. I’ve got a huge opportunity with Zuffa and being on Sky means it will be on in all the homes and the pubs. People will see me and say ‘oh, he’s that lad from Morecambe.'

“If they like what they see, everyone will get behind me in Morecambe and the surrounding areas, maybe even further afield. I’m trying to build a name for myself and show that anything is possible.”

The 22-year-old MacMillan is living proof of that given how the last 12 months of his life has unfolded. It was almost exactly a year ago that he had sent an off-the-cuff Instagram message to Josh Pritchard, Shane McGuigan’s assistant and now a coach in his own right, asking him if he could get some sparring.

As he told The Ring last year, he very nearly didn't make it to the gym for his first day after blowing a tyre on the drive from Morecambe to London. But he ditched his car, jumped on a train instead and never looked back.

He impressed so much in sparring that he turned professional and was steered to 3-0 (2 KOs) by Pritchard in the first four months of his career.

The young welterweight also caught the eye of Zuffa and was signed up ahead of their first UK show, which will be headlined by Chris Billam-Smith’s clash with Ryan Rozicki in Bournemouth on June 6. MacMillan, who is a stable mate of "CBS," will face Tyler Rivers (6-3) on the undercard in what will be the biggest test of his career so far.

“When Zuffa saw my record and had a look at me they were really interested,” MacMillan says. “It only started about three or four weeks ago so it has been quite quick to get over the line.

“It feels like a blessing and I’m ready to grab the opportunity with both hands and show people what I’m capable of. This is the big stage and it’s time to show it now. I feel like the more pressure there is, the better I perform.

“This is my first six-round fight as well so I’m looking forward to that. I’m excited to get in there and put on a show.”

And while MacMillan is Morecambe born and bred, the youngster actually spends his week living a "Marvin Hagler lifestyle" above an old pub in Leyton, east London, a short walk from McGuigan’s gym.

“It has been my life for about six months now,” he adds. “Monday to Friday in Leyton then back to Morecambe at weekends.

“I love being in the gym but when you’re just sat in a hotel twiddling your thumbs it can get a bit lonely. That can be a good thing though because you make it part of your work.

“I feel like that Marvin Hagler lifestyle can build the right mindset. He used to seclude himself and just get to work. It’s a big sacrifice, it’s lonely but it can make you gritty.

“Right now I’m living above an old pub in east London but it will all be worth it one day if I can buy a massive mansion like Tyson Fury.”