For the average working man, retirement is seen as a blessing. Once the time comes, retirement brings forth a new period of relaxation, that presents a chance to experience things that were previously impossible in employment. You can travel and live without restriction, as life seems to become a blank canvas when free from the clutches of your previous profession. However for boxers, retirement presents a life much different from the picture I have just painted. Floyd Mayweather Jr once said: “Boxing is easy, life is much harder”, however he was one of the lucky ones. Whilst Mayweather was able to willingly retire undefeated with millions in the bank, other boxers have found the transition into normal life to be an incredible struggle.
Boxers do not turn themselves off from their job as most people would do once they have clocked out at work, and for them it is their life 24 hours a day. In a sport as demanding as boxing, it has to be this way if you are to make a serious career of it, with training becoming more than just a ritual for those preparing to fight. When you step away from the heavy sparring, running, and gruelling training sessions, there is understandably a massive void that needs filling. Once a sport has dictated the pattern of your everyday life, such as diet plans and routine - it is an incredibly difficult transition into a life with less discipline. It is because of this that boxers struggle to stay away from the sport, and fight long beyond their prime as a result.
Boxing is an addiction to those who take part in it, and proves to be one irresistible to many ‘retired’ boxers. This is one of the main reasons in which we see so many boxers making comeback fights, fairly shortly after retirement. They just can't seem to stay away. Of course, a burning love for the sport, and an unfilled void is not the only reason in which we see fighters of the past make their return. In many cases, fighters who have fallen out of love with the sport pick the gloves up once more simply because they need the money. Whilst this does not exactly indicate a refusal to move on from the sport, it does highlight the fact that boxers struggle to adjust themselves to everyday life in a 9-5 profession. Whilst a small handful of the former elite are offered paths into the bright lights of television, many journeymen ex-pros find themselves having to learn a new trade, which proves a massive culture shock. You tend to find that a large portion of retired fighters stay in the gyms, and make the transition from boxer to trainer. This is arguably the best way to handle the transition for many, as you can remain surrounded by the sporting environment as you continue to get your fix of boxing. This route has been taken by a host of world class boxers - most notably Ricky Hatton, who credits coaching as the reason he was able to overcome his mental health issues.
Boxers have to be so wrapped up in themselves that they lose touch with the outside world. Eventually however, they have to re-familiarise themselves with normal life, which proves a tougher challenge than anything they have faced inside the ring.
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