There’ll no rematch with Anthony Joshua now.
Wladimir Klitschko has retired from boxing. The Ukrainian was stopped by Joshua in the 11th round of their epic heavyweight bout back in April at Wembley Stadium.
Klitschko and Joshua were expected to fight again in Las Vegas on November 11, but it emerged on Thursday morning that the 41-year-old has decided to step away from the sport.
Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn revealed that he has heard from Bernd Boente, Klitschko’s manager, about the boxer’s decision to retire.
I heard the news this morning from Bernd Boente that Wladimir Klitschko has decided to retire from boxing. We wish him all the success 👊🏼
— Eddie Hearn (@EddieHearn) August 3, 2017
And Klitschko confirmed the news, releasing a statement on his website.
“I deliberately took a few weeks to make my decision, to make sure I had enough distance from the fight at Wembley Stadium. As an amateur and a professional boxer, I have achieved everything I dreamed of, and now I want to start my second career after sports. I would have never imagined that I would have such a long and incredibly successful boxing career. I’m very thankful for this. Thanks to everyone who has always supported me. Especially my family, my team and my many fans.”
The Ukrainian retires with a record of 64 wins in 69 bouts, 53 by KO and five losses. He dominated the heavyweight division for the best part of a decade.
