Spence to walk away from boxing.
Errol Spence Jr. was once revered as one of the best fighters in the world. A three-belt welterweight world champion, the only man who could rival his claim to king of his division was one Terence Crawford, the fighter who held the only belt Spence didn’t have.
The two were linked to a showdown for a good while. Both were undefeated, both were easily the most dominant fighters in their class, and both were Americans on the pound-for-pound list.
In short, it was a formula that mixed its own ingredients together, a fight that theoretically made itself.
Only, it took a while to put together. And by the time it was finalised, there was a rare air about it, and everyone in boxing knew that it was an event that didn’t come around very often.
Fans and pundits alike were as split as they could possibly be. Some predicted one way, while many predicted the other. Either way, it was thought that a close, high-level fight was the one thing that was guaranteed.
High-level though it may have been, it was anything but close. Spence was dropped multiple times and stopped late on. So bad was the defeat that many called for Spence’s retirement immediately after.
After many rumours, the American returned on Saturday to take on Tim Tszyu in Australia, almost exactly three years after the Crawford bout.
Spence would end up losing by healthy margins on the cards, and he would announce that he would officially be hanging up the gloves during post-fight discussions.
A defining welterweight talent of his era, Errol Spence Jr. was truly a titanic force during his absolute prime. We wish him a very happy retirement.
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