adminFORMER world heavyweight champion David Haye has been advised to retire after major shoulder surgery. The 33-year-old Briton had a five-hour reconstruction operation on his right shoulder in Germany on Thursday.
“The boxing gods keep hinting that maybe enough is enough,” said Haye, who has cancelled his 8 February bout with Tyson Fury.
“It’s a crushing blow for me. This wasn’t how I wanted to end 2013.
“Perhaps it just wasn’t meant to be.”
Haye announced his retirement in October 2011, three months after losing his WBA belt to Ukrainian Wladimir Klitscho in Germany, but he returned to the ring the following year.
“The surgery and subsequent results are a bitter pill to swallow because I truly felt I had a lot more to offer,” Haye said.
“But I’ve been boxing for 23 years now, amateur and pro, and this has clearly taken its toll on my body.
“I genuinely believed the shoulder injury wasn’t that bad. But the doctor sent me for a detailed MRI scan and within 24 hours I was told the full extent of the damage. Twenty-four hours after that I was in the operating theatre.
“I had big plans for next year and the ultimate goal was to win back the world heavyweight title.
“What I didn’t anticipate was that this year would be the unluckiest of my career and that a number of injuries would disrupt my plans so much.”-BBC.
Bongani Ndlovu
Online Reporter