Oleksandr Usyk’s legacy and reputation is not based solely off of his skills in the ring, but also his mentality of taking on all comers – whenever, wherever. Now, one of his most arduous tests has made the decision to hang up the gloves, despite challenging for a world title just three months ago.
A three-time national champion in Latvia and former police officer, Mairis Briedis made the switch to professional boxing in 2009 and demonstrated phenomenal talent and power to rise into cruiserweight title contention in the years that followed. On his way to a title shot, Briedis secured 18 stoppages in 21 victories, knocking out current WBA (Regular) heavyweight champion Manuel Charr and former WBC title challenger Danny Williams, who famously knocked out Mike Tyson in 2004.
The success of ‘The Latvian Punisher’ saw him pitted up against Germany’s Marco Huck for the WBC interim title in 2017, where the winner was expected to face Tony Bellew for the full version of the belt. However, Bellew made the decision to vacate his belt in favour of a showdown with David Haye in the heavyweight division, leaving Briedis and Huck to battle it out for the vacant belt.
As had become habitual, Briedis dominated the contest from the get-go and was crowned as the WBC champion, before receiving his invitation to the coveted World Boxing Super Series, where eight of the world’s top cruiserweights battled it out for undisputed glory in a legendary tournament.
Briedis advanced past Cuba’s Mike Perez with relative ease and faced off with WBO champion Usyk in a unification bout in his hometown of Riga. Unfortunately, it was here where Briedis lost his unbeaten record, although the stock of both men rose in what has to be considered as one of Usyk’s closest and toughest ever fights, but still the Ukrainian claimed the majority-decision and of course went on to win the remainder of the tournament.
As for Briedis, he bounced back with unanimous-decision wins before eventually getting his hands on the WBO cruiserweight crown with a third-round knockout win over Krzysztof Glowacki in the semi-final of another instalment of the World Boxing Super Series and would then defeat Yuniel Doritcos for the IBF title in the final the following year.
However, after suffering back-to-back defeats to Australia’s Jai Opetaia, Briedis took to Instagram to announce that he has called time on his career, hanging up the gloves with an impressive resume and record of 28-3, aged 39-years-old.
“25 years ago I stepped into the unknown, putting on boxing gloves for the first time, not realizing at the time that it would lead me to a career as a professional athlete. Boxing over time became my passion, my career and most of my life.
“Today I want to share a decision that was not easy for me to make. First of all, because the path that I have walked over the years has been filled with so many unforgettable moments and joys of victory, it has made me the person I am today and has allowed me to pursue new goals and achievements all this time which has served as a drive for me to always strive for more.
“This pursuit of more has, in turn, been the other side of the coin, where I have not always been able to fully explain myself, my intentions in several situations, and this has remained something that I will have to work on in the future.
“But despite everything, with the deepest gratitude to every person who has supported or motivated me at some point, or simply followed my progress, I would like to say thank you for these 25 years and officially announce the end of my professional boxing career.
“Every fight, especially those that took place in Latvia, was special for me. I always felt incredible support from my peers, and this is what inspired me to higher and even higher goals and achievements. As I have always said, “my dope is my people”. This support and energy I felt from you made my boxing career unforgettable.
“Anyway, boxing was not just a career – it was a life filled with passion, emotions and dreams. But it’s time to say goodbye to the ring and open a new chapter in my life.
“I remain yours, Mairis Briedis, and I promise that I will continue to share my experience, help new generations of boxers and inspire everyone who pursues their dreams. Let this story be an example of what can be achieved when the heart is on fire, that mistakes can be corrected by learning from them, and that the most important thing is to get up after a fall and move on.
“Onward, towards your next goals.
“With love and respect,
“Mairis Briedis”
We at Boxing Social would like to congratulate Mairis Briedis on an outstanding career and wish him both a happy retirement and good luck in whatever comes next.
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