A boxer’s world heavyweight championship belt is up for sale at a Kent auction house.

The World Boxing Federation (WBF) belt, won by Joe Bugner in 1998, is part of a collection of sporting memorabilia being sold by Bentley’s Fine Art Auctioneers in Cranbrook on Friday, July 4.

Bugner won the WBF title after beating James “Bonecrusher” Smith.

He was 48 at the time - the oldest boxer to win a world title.

The belt was bought from him in 2008 by the Boughton Monchlesea private lettings tycoon and boxing fan Fergus Wilson.

Mr Wilson boxed in his youth, training at the same London gym as British heavyweight champion Henry Cooper, though he knew Cooper’s brother George better.

Mr Wilson used to box at country fairs and workingmen’s clubs for 10 shillings (50p) prize money to supplement his income while training to be a maths teacher.

He met Bugner on several occasions in the latter stages of Bugner’s career.

He said: “At the time, I had a number of Hungarians working for me on my houses and I took some of them to see Joe. He was delighted with the chance to speak Hungarian again, which he said he hadn’t done in decades.”

Although a naturalised British citizen, Bugner had been born in Szeged in southern Hungary, fleeing with his mother to Britain after the 1956 Soviet invasion of their country.

Bugner’s career of 69 wins and only 13 defeats saw him take on fighters such as Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier and Henry Cooper.

Mr Wilson and his wife Judith once owned the largest buy-to-let property portfolio in Kent, making them both multi-millionaires, but he has since largely disposed of his homes.

But Mr Wilson said: “I am 77 this summer and not in the best of health.

“I thought it was time to pass Joe’s belt onto another collector.”

Auctioneer Robin Fletcher said: “Sporting memorabilia such as championship belts always spark a lot of interest - and Joe Bugner was a very popular fighter in his day.”

The auction is on Friday, July 4 and starts at 10am.

Viewing is between 1pm and 5.30pm, on Wednesday, July 2, and between 9.30am and 5.30pm, on Thursday, July 3.