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    Beating takes its toll, former world champ and Pacquiao tormentor Horn retires

    Memory issue leads to Horn retirement: 'I want to be able to remember my children’s names, and the big moments in their lives'
    Jul 5, 2023
    Jeff Horn vs Manny Pacquiao
    PHOTO: Wendell Alinea/MP Promotions

    SIX years since pulling off one of the biggest upsets in boxing history, Jeff Horn has decided to call it a career.

    Jeff Horn retires

    The Australian fighter who dethroned the legendary Manny Pacquiao to wrest the WBO welterweight crown in 2017 announced his retirement, citing memory issue as the main reason.

    He made the announcement exactly six years to the day he shocked the world after scoring a controversial unanimous decision against one of boxing’s premier fighters of all time before a record crowd at the Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane, Australia.

    “I’ve had some issues with my memory. I’ve had some tests done on my brain and was told that if I kept going, there was a high potential risk of things worsening, and my brain suffering more,” he said.

    “I need to protect myself because I want to be able to remember my children’s names, and the big moments in their lives,” added the Aussie. “You can’t do that when you are punch-drunk.”

    Horn, 35, did take a beating from Pacquiao in their title fight before a crowd of 51,052, his face reduced to a bloody mess by the constant pummeling of the Filipino boxing great.

    He was on the verge of being knocked out in the ninth round, and was warned by referee Mark Nelson during the break that he would be force to stop the fight if Horn continues to receive a heavy beating from Pacquiao.

    Horn turned the table from there and strongly finished the fight to win it by scores of 115-113, 115-113, and 117-111.

    The war against Pacquiao and Horn’s succeeding fights against undefeated welterweight champion Terrence Crawford, Michael Zerafa, and Tim Tszyu – all of which he lost by technical knockout – took its toll on him that affected part of his brain.

    “The results (tests) showed I am below averaged for memory recall for a normal person my age,” he admitted.

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    “There is no training you can do to make my brain better. Once it’s damaged, there’s no going back. So that made it a no-brainer to retire.”

    His fight against Tszyu – son of Hall of Famer Kostya Tszyu – in August 2020 was the last of his career, which ended with a 20-3 (13 KOs) record.

    Horn said he turned down an offer of $1 million to fight again for one last time.

    Life after boxing would be spent by Horn campaigning to stop bullying.

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      Partnering with long-time trainer Glenn Rushton, Horn is involved in the project ‘Bullyproof Australia,’ which will teach anti-bullying tactics in schools within Queensland.

      Horn was a self-confessed victim of bullying as a kid, which led him to take up boxing.

      Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph

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      PHOTO: Wendell Alinea/MP Promotions
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