Haye to quit boxing after devastating Bellew loss

DAVID HAYE is set to announce his retirement from boxing, ending a 16-year professional career that saw him become a two-weight world champion. The 37-year-old (below) posted on Twitter on Wednesday evening that an update on his future was imminent and Sportsmail understands a decision has been made to walk away from the ring on the back of two straight defeats by Tony Bellew. It comes after repeated calls to quit from figures in and around boxing. Plenty felt he should have left after his first defeat to Bellew last year, when he ruptured his achilles mid-fight, and that sentiment intensified sharply following his fifth-round stoppage loss to the same opponent earlier this month, during which he was a shadow of the brilliant fighter who unified the cruiserweight division before winning the WBA heavyweight belt in 2009. Barring a drastic late U-turn, his record will read 28 wins and four defeats, with 26 knockouts. Haye will remain in the sport as a promoter, with Joe Joyce the leading name in his Hayemaker Ringstar outfit. The Londoner wrote on social media: ‘Thank you for your kind words of love and support over the last couple of weeks. ‘I look forward to updating you on my plans for the future shortly. Sometimes it takes a little while to find the right words.’