LONDON, Feb. 5 (UPI) -- Former super middleweight champion Joe Calzaghe retired from boxing Thursday with an unblemished 46-0 career record.
The surprise announcement by England's most popular boxer followed his punishing victory against Roy Jones Jr. at New York's Madison Square Garden last November, and left possible challengers like Bernard Hopkins, unbeaten IBF light heavyweight champion Chad Dawson, and Jermain Taylor wanting.
"I thought long and hard about things, but I've decided to retire from boxing," the 37-year-old Calzaghe told the BBC in London. "It was a difficult decision, but I've achieved everything I've wanted to achieve in boxing."
In his career, Calzaghe was 22-0 in world championship bouts, held the super-middleweight belt for more than 10 years, and won by knockout 32 times.
He had not lost since July 1990, when he was an amateur.
