LONDON — Former super-middleweight champion Joe Calzaghe retired from boxing Thursday with a perfect 46-0 record.
“I’ve got no other goals to go for,” he said. “That’s why I am calling it a day.”
The 36-year-old Welshman outpointed Roy Jones Jr. in November in his last fight of a 16-year pro career.
Calzaghe held the WBO super middleweight world title for more than 10 years, unifying the title against Mikkel Kessler in April 2007, before moving up to light heavyweight to fight Bernard Hopkins and Jones.
“It was a difficult decision to make but I have achieved everything I wanted to achieve in boxing,” he said. “I’ve been world champion for 11 years, unifying the super middleweight division, going to America and winning light heavyweight titles against great fighters like Hopkins and Roy Jones.
“I had a long think with my family. My children wanted me to give up, plus my mum. That’s why I decided to call it a day and will go on to do something else.”
Calzaghe said he was tempted to fight three more times to match Rocky Marciano’s 49-0 record, but said he lacked the hunger.
And there will be no comeback, he pledged.
“My decision is to retire. I’ve been boxing for 25 years and, like I said, I’ve achieved everything I want to achieve,” he said. “You can never say never in this game, but I can’t see myself boxing again.
“There’s loads of things I want to do. I’m proud to be one of only a few fighters in history to retire undefeated.”
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