SAYING GOODBYE
Three days after losing his last fight and announcing his retirement, Tony Bellew answers a call from Matt Christie and sombrely reflects on his boxing career
Tony Bellew opens up about his storied career as he hangs up his gloves
I LOOK BACK ON THOSE EARLY DAYS. I WAS JUST A CHEERLEADER THINKING I WAS FLOYD MAYWEATHER. I THOUGHT BOXING WAS A GREAT SPORT. BUT IT’S A BRUTAL HORRIBLE BUSINESS, FULL OF SCUMBAGS AND BACKSTABBERS.’
IT’S not been easy. People have no idea. I think some people think I tripped up and landed in millions of pounds. The miles I’ve run while I’ve been starving hungry. The thousands of rounds I sparred. The thousands of bad days I had when I took beatings in the gym. Beatings far worse than I ever took in a boxing ring. I’ve never really reflected before. I sat in my kitchen the morning after I won the world title at Goodison Park in 2016, just looking at the belt. I couldn’t believe I’d done it. That was what I wanted, the WBC title.
I’d hit the heights that I always wanted to hit when I knocked out Ilunga Makabu. But even then, I couldn’t reflect on my career.
I was still chasing something, there was more for me to do, even after winning the title.
I went quickly into my first defence against BJ Flores because I needed to get money in. Goodison Park was the defining moment of my career but, financially, it wasn’t a good decision. I was still chasing the pound.
Then I beat David Haye in March 2017 and I was secure. I didn’t need to fight again. Just like that. One fight. The only reason I gave him the rematch is because I gave him my word that I would. I told all the press before that first fight that, after I beat him and retire him, I’ll give him a rematch. So I beat him and retired him. Then I gave him the rematch. Then I beat him in the rematch.
In my mind, after that win in May, I was retired. I got married in July. We went on our honeymoon. I was sitting on a beach drinking with my wife, completely carefree. I had never done that before in the whole 20 years I’d been boxing. I had never fully let myself go and relaxed. But it was while I was on my honeymoon that the challenge came in from Oleksandr Usyk. And he we are. It is what it is. Now I can reflect because I lost, and my career is over. No more chasing. It’s over. It really is over. I don’t regret taking that last fight. I had to do it. I would never have lived with myself if I never took that fight. But I won’t be boxing again. I’m going to do bits and bobs of training, but no boxing. My hands can’t take it anymore. I broke my hands five times in my career so I won’t be punching anyone or anything. I’ll do different things. I’ll do a bit of wrestling, stuff like that. I’ll play football twice a week, I’ll do my best to stay fit. But I will not miss boxing training, I used to punish my body and put it through some horrendous sessions.
I’ve got businesses that are already thriving. I’m a shareholder in a very successful security company. I have a huge property portfolio that I look after myself, I won’t let anyone else manage that. I’ve got commercial properties, flats, apartments, houses. There are so many things I’ve got to keep me busy, don’t worry about that.
Most importantly, I’ve got three kids. They can see me on a full-time basis now, I’m sick of being a part-time father. I don’t want that anymore. I want to be a dad who goes to all the assemblies, all the parents’ evenings, a dad who’s just there. Not a dad who’s in a hotel this week because he’s in camp. Not a dad who can’t go on holiday this time because he’s fighting. Not a dad who can’t spend time with his kids because he’s got a f**king press conference or media workout. There is always something.
For 20 years I’ve given boxing everything. It’s enough now, it’s taken enough.
I won’t miss it. I have a life after boxing. If I need to I can do a 9-to-5 every day through security and my properties, but I will work out how to manage my time and grow my businesses and my investments.
I won’t train fighters. I’m far too demanding.
For someone like me, who was never the most talented, I would demand at least what I have put in. And when I look at how much I put in, it’s too much. It really is. It’s been a way of life for 20 years. There are fighters today who are a success who never had to give what I gave. They were more athletically gifted than me or naturally more talented. But I had to give absolutely everything. I would ask that ethos, that dedication and determination from fighters I was training. And, in all honesty, I don’t really see it much in today’s fighters.
You will see me at boxing events now and again, you’ll see me supporting Jordan Gill, Anthony Fowler and the Mcdonnell twins, but it will be few and far between. The sport literally broke my heart when I lost my final fight.
As much as everyone didn’t think I had a chance, I really thought I was going to beat him. For seven rounds I showed I can box with the best boxer on the planet. I showed that my brain can match his brain. But through all that, I got tired. I got tired on the most important night of my life. I felt great at the weight. But boxing isn’t kind to fighters who come down in weight at my kind of age. I’m not saying I was a true heavyweight but I’d got used to weighing 15st. When I got back from my honeymoon I was 17st and that was in July. It was a struggle, but it sounds like I’m making excuses. I’m not, because on the night, Usyk beat the best version of me.
Sometimes I regret not moving up to cruiserweight earlier in my career. But if I’d done that I think my career would have been a lot more damaging to me. There might have been better fights, at least from the point of view of the fans, but they would have been wars for me personally. So I feel like I made the right decision to stay at light-heavyweight for as long as I did. I’d got a ranking with the WBC at light-heavy and that was the belt I wanted. I beat Top 10 contenders and won final eliminators. But in the end the weight was too much by the time I challenged Adonis Stevenson in 2013.
I’d hit the weight on the Wednesday before that fight. I was 12st 7lbs. I phoned Kerry Kayes, and I asked him what I should do. He said to eat a breast of boiled chicken and a 500ml bottle of water. I ate the boiled chicken and I drank the water and I gained five pounds. The food didn’t even weigh five pounds. I couldn’t get it off, whatever I was doing.
My body had gone into shock. On the morning of the weigh-in I had to get in red hot baths and it was the closest I’ve ever been to having a breakdown. And maybe I was having a breakdown – I put comedian Kevin Hart on my ipad and I was laughing at his jokes and crying at the same time. I’ve never been through anything like that in my life.
People don’t understand how hard it was for me to make light-heavyweight. Every single morning I had to get up at half-past-five and run between five and seven miles on an empty stomach. I’d come back and try and sleep for an hour, but I was so hungry all the time. My body was cannibalising itself. That was six days a week for 14 weeks to get to 12st 7lbs. Fourteen weeks of training, of being hungry.
I won’t miss those training camps. Having sparring partners coming to the gym with a point to prove, with £1,000 being offered for knocking you down.
My greatest regret is not signing with Matchroom
MAYBE I WAS HAVING A BREAKDOWN. I WAS LAUGHING AT JOKES WHILE CRYING AT THE SAME TIME”
earlier. I wish I had been with Eddie Hearn and Barry Hearn from the start. Everything was structured, everything was planned, they were a great outfit to deal with. I’ve had my ups and downs with Eddie, we’ve had murderous times over several issues but the one thing I can say about them is they’re honest. They’re the most honest outfit in the world. What you see is what you get, the numbers never lie, and they show you the numbers from top to bottom.
It was a great move going back to Rotunda and training with Mick Mcallister. He got my basics back and my boxing IQ was ignited again. I’m very grateful for the time and work Mick put into me. And without Jimmy Albertina I would never have realised I was good enough to become a pro boxer in the first place. I owe Rotunda everything, I’m very privileged to have worked with these people.
The best professional coach I ever came across was Dave Coldwell. He was my friend before he was my trainer. We went through a great five years together and it was an amazing journey. Dave took me to another level and by the end, I was convinced I was going to beat Oleksandr Usyk. The plan was to get him to start walking on to things. The only bad part about was when he started walking on to things, I was f***king exhausted. He’s a brilliant fighter, he could outbox anybody. He might not be able to keep the really big heavyweights off him, but he’s so clever, so talented. Even when I was feinting him, he was so quick on the response.
I’ve run a lot of miles, a lot of training camps, had a lot of injuries. It’s age. I always say, ‘Don’t overstay your welcome’. I don’t think I have yet, but my body is saying otherwise. It’s telling me it’s had enough.
I was always told not to be so open in interviews. But I’ve always tried to be me. I always wanted to stay at the end and talk to fans, I always wanted to give a bit back. People said I was too accessible, I was told not to give so many interviews. But I was always grateful to the fans. I was honoured that you guys wanted to talk to me. I’m still grateful now, and I’m still shocked that people want to know about me. I’m happy it’s over, and it’s been a great career. I just need to get away from it. I’m relieved. All the damage that could have been done has been done. It’s definitely over now.