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Inside Hemlington Boxing Club in Middlesbrough, music is drowned out by the sound of gloves hitting pads.<\/b><\/p>\n
For young men here, nights in the ring are far better than the alternative.<\/p>\n
Because outside, away from the bright lights of the gym, riders wearing balaclavas roar past on quad bikes in the darkness.<\/p>\n
“You see it all the time,” says Dylan, a 20-year-old who trains at the club.<\/p>\n
“But I just can’t see it stopping. The police can’t really do much against it.”<\/p>\n
Attention has turned to organised crime in Middlesbrough since seven people, including two police officers, were killed last month in a crash.<\/p>\n
A Volkswagen Passat that had been pursued by officers travelled the wrong way along the A66 and collided head-on with a police car.<\/p>\n
For young men like Dylan, who knew one of the lads killed, there are worries about how easy it is to get sucked into a criminal way of life.<\/p>\n
“You could walk around the corner and there’s just a gang of lads stood there and they shout you over,” he says.<\/p>\n
Dylan and other boxers tell BBC Newsbeat they blame a lack of safe activities and opportunities for young people in the area. <\/p>\n
He says getting into the sport has kept them away from gangs on the streets. <\/p>\n
“It stops you going down these bad tracks of crime, drugs, and what most of the lads my age are doing,” he says.<\/p>\n
“It’s just not something I want to be involved in, really,” says Dylan.<\/p>\n
“I don’t think anyone would, but some people just get forced down these routes.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n