The 39-year-old boxer – who has been out of the ring for more than a year – loves Scuba and once he finally retires, he is keen to boost his skills even further.

He told Boxing News magazine: “A lot of people are scared to even dip their head in the water, let alone dive deeper and deeper, with just enough oxygen that can fit in your tank.

“But I see it as a form of meditation. I want to be like the freedivers that go all the way down and start hallucinating at certain points.”

Deontay finds being in the water a “magical” place.

He said: “I’m a great swimmer and I’ve always loved the waters.

“There’s great power in the waters, there’s magic in the ocean.

“The ocean is 75% undiscovered. A lot of people think that’s where evil lives – at the bottom of the ocean – but it’s all unknown.

“A lot of people ask, ‘Where’s the most beautiful place you’ve been?’ And I’ll always tell them that it’s under the sea.

You’re a complete stranger to that world, needing things to help you breathe, but you’ve got to stay calm. You can’t panic.”

The sportsman’s last dive was in the “beautiful” Indian Ocean.

He recalled: “My last excursion was in the Indian Ocean and it was beautiful.

“There was a lot of ocean life down there and, while we were strangers to that environment, they offered us great hospitality, welcoming us with open arms – or rather, open fins.”