David Haye has officially announced his retirement from boxing.
With a final record of 28-4, Haye has decided to hang up his gloves for good following a pair of brutal defeats to fierce rival Tony Bellew.
Haye became only the second fighter in history, after Evander Holyfield, to unify the cruiserweight titles and move up to heavyweight to claim a world championship in that weight class too.
The 37-year-old released a lengthy statement on his website on Tuesday morning in which he explained how his age had caught up with him in recent years, limiting the amount and quality of his performances since his four-year layoff from 2012 to 2016.
“Just as boxing gave me the chance to make my dreams a reality, I now hope my children do the same in whatever path they choose,” Haye wrote. “They know from their father’s story that anything is possible with hard work, dedication and extraordinary sacrifice.
This is not the end, it is the start of something new. Ain’t no stopping us now. Full statement 👉🏾https://t.co/paCqDm3wB8 pic.twitter.com/1tVHOezy7I
— David Haye (@davidhaye) June 12, 2018
“Since October 1990, I have been a boxer. That’s nearly 10,000 days of eating and sleeping boxing, and now I’m ready to close this chapter in my life.
“This is not the end of my story. It’s simply the start of something new.”
Haye will go down as a legend of British boxing and will continue on in the sport in a promoter’s capacity.
