People have asked me how I feel about having to withdraw from the game against John Ryder on Saturday due to a severe right hand injury. “Gout” is the only word that can describe how I feel. I got in touch with Mike Hayton, the best in the business with a hand injury and surgery next week to sort things out.
The injury happened early in the fourth game with a headbutt or something I was involved with, but then I felt it and I knew I couldn’t stop John from it. I wanted to win the title, take it home at the Derby and make people happy — that’s why I’ve been trying to talk about it ever since, even though I want people to understand what happened.
After an initial consultation with a surgeon, I was told that if I continued to fight, I could do lasting damage to my career. I might not have been able to box again, so I had to stop. I’ve read and seen horror stories about boxers with career-ending injuries.
The only way I can explain it is it’s like tying a soccer player’s shoelaces together and asking them to play football. In other words, if a footballer breaks his ankle, they are not required to continue playing. It was a difficult decision, a very difficult decision with a lot of things in it, but it was a decision I had to make. It will not be able to continue.
I’m 28, I have a lot of time and boxing. I want to make the most of it. Hopefully I’ll have a rematch to solve the problem. John is ready for a big fight against Canelo. If that doesn’t happen, I want to line up for John. I was on the scoreboard before I got injured, and it’s always going to be a good match if you put the two of us in the ring. I respect him very much.
If John gets Canelo, then the best of luck will come to him because he deserves it. John and I are both good people. We both have families. I told him after the game that I hope he wins the world title. I wish John all the best and I hope he gets the best out of this game.
I had a CT scan. You can see where the bones are broken, and I could have been permanently disabled. They would pin and screw my hands together, then it would take three to four months before I could start punching again.
Like I said, it was a very difficult decision. Every time I try to throw it, I can hear it crackling and clicking — even now I can hear it in my head when I’m thinking about it. At first I went to Derby Hospital and then Mike confirmed that it was a healing wound on the metacarpal. It’s like a cross on an X-ray. It was a bad holiday.
People have been saying that I should keep fighting. At this highest level, you can’t fight someone as good as John with one hand. You need to be able to stab him and use both hands. In the past few days, I’ve learned more about myself, more about boxing and it’s been a learning thing for me. I will come back stronger.
You will always be noticed on social media and that happened to me over the weekend. I laugh it. It affects my manager, Neil Marsh, more than I do. People search for people online then they do the hashtag # ‘Be kind’. You should just be kind and try to understand what people are going through.
This is my chance to let my fans and insiders know the truth, you can say anything about me, but I could lose my entire career that night. I still have a lot to offer in boxing. I’m inspired by people like John and all he’s done in his career, so I’ll be back. It’s top level boxing, so you can’t play the game when you’re with someone as good as John. I did my best to win. There were a few tears in my eyes after it happened. Now there will be time for family. It’s hard because my family really gave up on me, because they know what kind of person I am and how much I want it. I put a lot of pressure on myself as a fighter. We continue, though. It’s not about getting knocked down, it’s about how you get up. And I will get up from here.
