Bradford boxing hero Frank Grant was today starting a four-year jail sentence after he brutally attacked a man outside a takeaway restaurant.

The disgraced former British middleweight champion was told by a judge that he had even betrayed the rules of the ring in biting off part of Trevor Hoey's left ear and continuing to attack him while he was on the ground.

Grant carried out the terrifying attack on Mr Hoey as he left a Chinese takeaway in Smith Avenue, Odsal, Bradford, last August.

Bradford Crown Court heard how Grant lay in wait before rushing at him from behind and punching him to the ground in front of a crowd including young children.

Prosecutor Julia Nelson said witnesses then described seeing the 37-year-old fighter repeatedly punching and kicking Mr Hoey, as well as stamping on his head three or four times.

Witnesses said the kicks to Mr Hoey's head were like watching "a footballer taking a penalty" and a shopkeeper also saw Grant lift up his victim at one stage.

"In between these kicks the complainant was picked up, appearing limp and unconscious, and then thrown back to the ground," said Miss Nelson.

Grant, of Bank Street, Wibsey, was also seen by another witness to bend down towards Mr Hoey as if talking in his ear.

"It is clear when the ambulance staff came that a significant part of his ear was missing," added Miss Nelson.

When the attack ended Grant calmly walked back to his car and drove away, but Mr Hoey's blood was later matched to stains found on a cloth in the vehicle.

Mr Hoey, who had worked as a doorman for 12 years, was taken to hospital suffering from black eyes, a fractured left eye socket, fractured nose and damage to his ear.

The court heard that since the attack he had been unable to work, had developed a stammer and also suffered psychological problems.

Grant handed himself in to police a few days later, but he denied being involved in the attack.

He admitted that there was a history between himself and Mr Hoey and claimed that he had been assaulted by Mr Hoey on New Year's Eve.

He was picked out by witnesses at a video identification parade and yesterday he pleaded guilty to a charge of causing Mr Hoey grievous bodily harm with intent.

The court heard that Grant had previous convictions for violence, including a charge of common assault on his then wife.

He became British champion in 1992, but after retiring from the ring his plans to run a pub collapsed and his marriage broke down.

Judge Roger Scott was handed a bundle of documents in support of Grant including Telegraph & Argus articles highlighting his anti-drug work.

The judge also read out a letter from a Bradford businessman in which he revealed how Grant had raised thousands of pounds to send a terminally ill boy to Disneyland in Florida.

Grant's barrister, Timothy Stead, emphasised the importance he placed on his own self-esteem and added: "He regarded himself as a champion not only in sporting terms but also as a champion representing other people of his kind in every sense."

He revealed that Grant had experienced hostility from people who tried to boost their own status taking him on and he was also tormented by suggestions that he was a "wife-beater" following his conviction in 1996.

"If it wasn't for the general provocation over the years, his rather tense reaction to it and what appears to have been a feud between himself and Mr Hoey no doubt he wouldn't be here now," said Mr Stead. "He would be the model citizen that he regards it so hugely important to be."

Jailing Grant Judge Scott told him: "You want to be seen as a decent black man who sets an example.

"I'm sure that's been right for a very long time, but unhappily in this case the example is not one you would wish to cherish."

He described it as a tragedy that a man who was previously regarded as a hero and someone to look up to and valued was in the dock before him.