Legendary undefeated boxing star Terence Crawford makes gorgeous RETIREMENT choice: ‘Nothing else left to show’
Boxing icon Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford has announced his retirement from the sport at the age of 38.
The American, a five-weight world champion, won all 42 fights of his professional fights and cemented his place among the best of his generation with victory over Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez in September.
On Tuesday night, the Nebraska native announced on social media that he was ‘walking away as a great with nothing else left to prove… not because I’m done fighting but because I’ve won a different kind of battle – the one where you walk away on your own terms.’
Crawford hinted he would remain in the sport, insisting this ‘is not goodbye’ but just ‘the end of one fight and the beginning of another.’
The pound-for-pound great said in a statement: ‘I’ve been blessed to live out a dream that started long before the lights, the fans, or the world titles. From Omaha to the biggest stages in boxing, every step of this journey was earned through sacrifice, discipline, and faith.
‘I gave this sport everything I had. I faced the best, moved through weight classes, and made history on my own terms. 42-0. 3x Undisputed [champion]. 5 Division World Champion. No shortcuts. No excuses.
Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford has announced his retirement from the sport at the age of 38
The American cemented his legacy with victory over Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez in September
‘This isn’t goodbye to boxing…it’s a thank you. Thank you to my family, my team, my city, and the fans who rode with me through every chapter.
‘Thank you to the sport for shaping the man I am today. The gloves may have come off but legacy is forever. History is never retired.’
Crawford made his debut in 2008 and went on to win 18 major world titles across five weight classes: lightweight, junior welterweight, welterweight, junior middleweight and super middleweight.
He beat rival Errol Spence Jr to become undisputed welterweight champion, having already cleaned out the junior welterweight division with victory over Julius Indongo. In his final fight, Crawford jumped up to 168lbs, beating Canelo to win the undisputed super middleweight crown in Las Vegas.
That made him the only fighter in the four-belt era to rule three different divisions and in a video announcing his retirement, Crawford said: ‘Every fighter knows this moment will come. We just never know when.
‘I spent my whole life chasing something. Not belts, not money, not headlines. But that feeling – the one you get when the world doubts you but you keep showing up and you keep proving everyone wrong.
‘This sport gave me everything – I fought for my family, my city, for the kid I used to be. The one who had nothing but a dream and a pair of gloves. And I did it all my way.
‘I gave this sport every breath I had, every scar, every triumph, every ounce of my heart… and I have made peace with what is next. Now, it’s time. Thank you.’
