BN: How settled are you in retirement?
Iโm really happy. Iโve been running my own business since 2020. Iโd had a good run of fights where Iโd done well financially and I invested a bit of money in property and started my own business. Before that, I was only earning good money when I was British champion. Iโd had a few years of worrying about the next payday โย when the next fight would even be. It was okay when I was at the Sauerlands, but the period between that and when I fought [in 2018, Alexander] Povetkin there was a bit of uncertainty.
Life after boxing was always a big thing for me. โWhat am I gonna do to provide for my family [Price has two children with wife Jade, and also has two dogs] after boxing?โ After it became apparent I werenโt gonna be a champion or make millions and go on a golf course for the rest of me life, that was always in the forefront of me mind. โNow I can hang them up.โ It werenโt an instant decision overnight โย it was gradual. I still had one foot in, one foot out. It was after Iโd done a couple of weeksโ training, I was lying on the bed absolutely exhausted โย wiped out. โI canโt put myself through this anymore.โ It werenโt just the physical side; it was emotionally draining. You donโt walk out the gym feeling a million dollars โย youโre getting put through the mill.
Outlook Energy Solutions. We install solar panels; renewable energies; insulations. Kind of like what I was doing before I went full-time in boxing โย I was a central heating engineer. We help people in fuel poverty โย weโll go and do this work free of charge for them. Thatโs the most satisfying part of it โย an old widow, young family, single mother is struggling to pay the bills and weโll go in and upgrade her property to be more energy efficient; warmer; save money on her bills. Thatโs something Iโm passionate about. Iโve got purpose to get up every morning. Iโve got things to keep me occupied through the day. Iโm busy; Iโm hands on.
I do have me moments where I miss the gym; the being a professional sportsman; being a fighter; the notoriety of being a fighter and everything else. But I do have to remind meself sometimes that I fucking hated it towards the end. I hated it. So every time I feel a bit melancholy or nostalgic I do have to remind meself it werenโt very enjoyable towards the end โย and even sometimes before that.
It was when I started getting paid that the enjoyment went out of it. I started getting paid as an amateur โ the pureness of it kind of went then. Youโve got to maintain it by succeeding; the pure joy went out of it early. The unhappiest times were travelling up to Dave Coldwellโs gym in Rotherham. That was me out of me comfort zone โย away from home, in a hotel room, time on me hands to sit doing fuck all. I didnโt even have a promoter so I didnโt even know when I was fighting. I hated it then and wanted to retire but I needed the money. When Tommy Brooks was over as a trainer โ it was just me, him and Franny Smith, who was great all through me career, in a little lock-up unit in Bootle in Liverpool. I was dwelling on the Tony Thompson fights, and donโt look back on those times with great fondness.ย Even fighting [in 2017, Kamil] Sokolowski on a six-rounder in Brentwood โย I got paid ยฃ10,000, and I was lucky to get that. โIโve got no oneโs show I can fight on โย I might have to go back to work.โ Itโs stressful. I got dead fortunate, got the Povetkin fight and a few decent fights and was alright. Joe McNally gave me the new lease of life I needed at that point.
BN: How satisfied are you with your career?
It depends what type of mood Iโm in. If Iโm in a positive mood Iโm satisfied, but I might have days where I feel a little bit dissatisfied and not happy with the way things went. โI could have done better.โ The key for me is the acceptance โย Iโve got to accept my career ended how it did, with what Iโd achieved. I canโt change that now so I have to accept it. But I also have to accept that, despite many people believing and me briefly believing I could have been the next big thing, I simply just werenโt good enough, and thatโs why I didnโt do it. It doesnโt mean I werenโt good, โcause I was, and I had a good career, but I werenโt good enough to be the very best. Accepting that is a really powerful thing. Itโs liberating.
Iโll think about amateur fights in 2004 โ that no one knows about โย the little things can creep into your mind. We all have little demons in our head which will creep in. It all depends what type of mood Iโm in. That can depend on whether Iโve had a weekend out on the booze, or if Iโm tired. Iโm in a good positive mindset at the minute โ long may that continue.
I had big anxiety issues โย I didnโt realise at the time. I just thought that was normal โย the way you were meant to feel. I werenโt anxious about boxing โย it was anxiety in general, and a lot of it stemmed from boxing and pressure to earn money and keep providing for my family. Itโs only now I know what it is, and it was quite high anxiety a lot of the time.
Me wife used to tell me I had anxiety when I was boxing, and Iโd take it as an insult. I didnโt even know what the word meant, but I did have it. As you get older you start becoming aware of how you feel, and a lot more things are in the media about that type of thing. The reason I know I had it is I havenโt got it anymore. It was the pressures of boxing; of performing; not wanting to let people down. General fatigue; picking up bugs and illnesses; I had it down to the physical side of training but it was definitely emotional and mental. Me moods as well, around the house; depression and anxiety comes hand in hand. When I was going up to Dave Coldwellโs gym was when it was the worst for me.
[Thereโs] loads of regrets. This is a regret in life as well โย I wish Iโd have embraced being the size I am when I was younger, but I didnโt like being so big. I wish Iโd have embraced it and stood forward and been proud of being big, in life and in boxing โย and utilised me size better. But because I didnโt like being tall when I was youngerย I didnโt want to be the stereotypical tall boxer โย throw the jab a lot and use the reach. If I could do it again Iโd have done more mental coaching early doors, but I werenโt having it. I didnโt believe in it โย saw it as a weakness โย working with a mind coach. I started after the Tony Thompson fight [in 2013], and it was good, and even more so at the end โย when you become more receptive of it, itโs great. I wish Iโd have done the small things that give you marginal gains. Staying in the gym the extra 10 minutes to do a bit more stretching. A bit more groundwork. Rehab on injuries. Little things like that. They were in my control.
Things that were out of my control were me punch resistance โย I couldnโt take the best shot. The punch resistance transitioned into the engine. I got caught; buzzed; wobbled; the adrenaline kicks in, the heart rate comes up, the breathing gets heavier and the panic is there. Thatโs why I struggled with me engine as well. The adrenaline dump would come in then. I [also] dread to think how many times Iโve been concussed. But overall I canโt have regrets, because I have to accept itโs done.
Some would give their right hand to be where I am, mentally and emotionally, after boxing. Iโm definitely at peace.
BN: Who was the best you fought?
Povetkin. His accuracy; his timing. His pedigree โย Olympic champion.
BN: If youโd beaten him youโd have challenged the undefeated Anthony Joshuaโฆ
I probably felt heโd have battered me, but if Iโd beat Povetkin then Iโd have gone into the fight with some degree of confidence. Itโd have been a different story. Before the Povetkin fight, โYouโre fighting Joshua nextโ. โFucking hell.โ Thatโs something that can come into your head sometimes [in retirement], but itโs all ifs and buts.
BN: Could you have beaten Tyson Fury when that fight looked likely, in 2013?
Iโd have had a great chance of winning that fight then. He was still raw; brawling. I had great momentum, and was putting people away left, right and centre. Even later on I donโt know how many fights I had where I didnโt at least drop or wobble someone badly, but earlier on in me career me hands were in great condition โย I had injuries later on โ I think I could have [beaten Fury]. Boxingโs not who you fight, itโs who you donโt fight, and that was what the Furys knew. Itโs who you fight and when you fight them, and they knew at that time, โWeโll wait for this oneโ. But it didnโt come. Thatโs another big, โWhat if?โ.
Part of me thought [later on] he might think, โI want to beat the last man that beat meโ. โI wonder if heโd go for itโ โ if he was running out of challenges;ย running out of ideas.
I see him a couple of years ago when his baby was in hospital in Liverpool, and run with him around the park. He got in touch to reach out and go for a run, but apart from that I donโt keep in touch with him.
Heโs got to be [one of the best heavyweights ever]. Heโs still undefeated; long career; beat Deontay Wilder, whoโs a great fighter, twice.
There are fighters more deserving [of fighting Fury than Francis Ngannou]. Iโd rather see him in the ring with a good fighter โ a boxer.
Heโll fight [Oleksandr] Usyk if he sees Usyk with a bit of a sluggish performance. He might go, โRight, nowโs the timeโ. Thatโs just wise, really โย clever. Itโs being business-minded. If he was backed into a corner Iโd back him and say heโll beat him, but you want everything in your favour.
BN: Did you ever get over those defeats by Tony Thompson?
Only years later. I was unforgiving to myself. I was my own worst critic, so it took years to let that go. It took years to let losing in the [Beijing 2008] Olympics semi-final go [Roberto Cammarelle was Priceโs opponent]. When I won the British title [in 2012, stopping Sam Sexton] I let that go โ I felt like Iโd redeemed meself.
BN: How much do the challenges Joshuaโs faced in recent years resonate?
I know what heโs thinking; what heโs going through. Heโs his own worst critic, and heโs a perfectionist, and perfectionism โย although itโs good to a degree, itโs not good โcause youโre never happy, because youโll never be perfect. Youโre very rarely happy โย even when youโre winning fights, unless your performance has been spot-on. He probably doesnโt feel like he won his last fight, against Jermaine Franklin โ he feels like he lost that fight. He needs to let go of wanting to please people โย impress people โย and just enjoy being a fighter. I can see the traits. He just needs someone who knows him โย knows how to make him tick and get the best out of him.
I donโt think heโll feel comfortable [against a late-replacement opponent on Saturday] โcause the last time this happened it all went wrong for him โย thatโll be in his head. Thereโll be more pressure on him to win convincingly. He wonโt get the same satisfaction of winning, because the opponent came in at short notice. โIโve won, but I didnโt impress everyone, so I donโt feel like Iโve won.โ When I fought Kash Ali [in 2019] and he got disqualified I didnโt feel like Iโd won. You start trying to fight opinions. โIโll show you โย I need to get people impressed again.โ That ainโt ever going to happen โย once theyโve made their mind up, theyโre gone. Heโs trying to win back the adulation when thatโs not possible. Heโs stuck between a rock and a hard place.
BN: How do you feel about your former promoters, the Sauerlands, backing Misfits Boxing?
Iโve seen Kalle quite heavily involved in that. I suppose they lost the big TV deal they had for years in Germany, and tried to break the UK market a couple of times โย I was the first port of call to try to do that. Theyโre involved in big fights and big shows [outside of Misfits] but theyโve probably just seen an opportunity, and theyโre businessmen at the end of the day. If they donโt do it, someone else will. It hasnโt altered me respect for them.
BN: How about your former sparring partner Dillian Whyte becoming caught up in a drugs-testing controversy?
When I see fights called off because of drug testing Iโm not really surprised, but I was surprised when it was Dillian, only โcause heโs had the issues before. I donโt think heโd do anything at this stage to jeopardise his career. Iโm giving him the benefit of the doubt. Last time it happened [when Whyte defeated Oscar Rivas in 2019] I was part of a show that could have got called off and didnโt [Price defeated Dave Allen].
Itโs probably more rife at the lower levels than the higher levels, where thereโs less chance of random drug testing. The more advanced you are in your career the more there is to lose, but Iโve always said that and then turned out to be wrong, โcause people are willing to take a chance to get that extra percentage itโll give them. You suspect itโs rife, rather than know, but thereโs way too many grey areas in boxing.
Itโs got to be a ban for life [for those found guilty]. But there are circumstances where it may have been an innocent mistake โย a supplement; contamination. Itโs finding the evidence to prove it wasnโt. Look at Jarrell Miller โ he was on every steroid under the sun. Look at Erkan Teper who knocked me out [in 2015]. They should have got banned for life, โcause they were on performance-enhancing drugs โ all the ingredients that it takes for someone to get really hurt in a boxing ring. They could well have just gone to jail for that. But when youโre talking a banned substance that might be a stimulant, then maybe not โย but these things can be masking agents for the naughtier stuff. Thereโs that many grey areas โย itโs like the wild west. Thereโs just no way of policing it.
I donโt think thereโs intent or malice in whatโs been found. Itโll be interesting to see what it is. Why would a man coming towards the end of his career, in the last big-money fight, risk it all? I just donโt see it. That might be me being naive.