Porter announces retirement after loss to Crawford
Terence Crawford stopped Shawn Porter (left in pic) in the 10th round by technical knockout in one of the most anticipated bouts of the year.
Crawford (38-0) retained his WBO welterweight title and extended his streak of stoppages to nine in front of a sold-out crowd of 11,568 at Mandalay Bay.
Porter (31-4-1), who had risen to become a legitimate top-five welterweight, and was easily the best opponent of Crawford’s career, displayed relentless aggression in the early rounds.
Crawford knocked down Porter early in the 10th round with a left uppercut and then delivered an exclamation point with a devastating right hook to the temple, followed by a left hook to the face.
Porter’s trainer and father, Kenny, threw in the towel and called for referee Celestino Ruiz to stop the fight. Porter stunned reporters by announcing his retirement from boxing at his post-fight press conference.
“I’m prepared to retire,” Porter said. “I was prepared to announce my retirement tonight — win, lose or draw. Even if it was a draw, we had a date. They were telling us we were going to have to do it again. I was not going to do it again. I am announcing my retirement right now.”