Terence Crawford was in attendance to watch Errol Spence Jr’s final fight – a unanimous decision loss to Tim Tszyu in Sydney, Australia.
Spence ended three years of inactivity following a loss to Crawford in 2023 when he returned this weekend against Tszyu. Fighting at middleweight for the first time in his career, the former pound-for-pound star failed to find the previous form that had led him to victories over the likes of Shawn Porter, Kell Brook and Danny Garcia.
Though Spence had his moments, producing some good body work and taking advantage of some quiet periods os action from Tszyu, he looked vulnerable when under pressure and fell away from the contest as the rounds progressed, other than a spirited effort in the eleventh.
Tyszu won a wide unanimous decision and, post-fight, the 36-year-old southpaw from Dallas, Texas, announced his retirement, saying:
“My money is good, it’s working for itself. Everything’s good, man. I got a beautiful family. I thank God that I’m leaving this sport with my faculties intact and my family still by my side. Everything’s gonna go well … This has been a great journey for myself – it’s time to live family life.”
It is a decision that Crawford, who had predicted a Spence win, appears to think is the correct move.
In a series of posts on X, the five-weight world champion provided his thoughts from ringside, ultimately deciding that his former rival’s reflexes are “gone”.
“Body language is not looking good … Tim stronger and just got more snap on his shots. You can see he’s taking Spence shot better than Spence taking his … Reflex’s gone.”
Spence joins Crawford in retirement as one of this generation’s standout welterweight world champions.
