Tony Bellew says retirement 'is an option' after David Haye fight - BBC Sport
Tony Bellew says he is considering retirement following his thrilling victory over bitter rival David Haye in London on Saturday.
Last updated on .From the section Boxing

Tony Bellew says he is considering retirement following his surprise victory over bitter rival David Haye at London's O2 Arena on Saturday.

But the Liverpudlian, 34, admitted that an offer for one further fight could be too lucrative to turn down.

"I don't know how many times more I can put my body and family through this," Bellew told BBC Radio 5 live.

Asked whether the Haye bout would be his last, he added: "It's an option. It's something I'm thinking about."

WBC cruiserweight champion Bellew defied most predictions to beat Haye - who was affected by a torn Achilles tendon - on his heavyweight debut, and he now has 29 wins and a draw from 32 fights.

Promoter Eddie Hearn said on Sunday that representatives of American WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder and WBO champion Joseph Parker of New Zealand had contacted him about a potential fight.
• None Listen: 'I’ve beaten the best cruiserweight this country has produced'

Bellew told BBC One's Breakfast programme: "I have a lot of options. If people want to come and talk to me... I don't know what's going to happen, but it will have to be something special.

"I am the best heavyweight in the world outside the champions, and none of them have a name like David Haye on their record, so what does that mean?

"David Haye was like the bogeyman of the division. Nobody wanted to fight him but the fat cruiserweight did. And you know what? He beat him too. Just let that sink in."

Meanwhile, Haye says his surgery to reattach his Achilles has been a success and that the surgeons are "very confident of a 100% recovery back to full fitness".