Lucas Matthysse announces retirement from boxing

Lucas Matthysse, a longtime contender at 140 and 147 pounds, has decided to retire from boxing following his July 14 loss to Manny Pacquiao, announcing his decision in an Instagram post.

Matthysse, who turns 36 in September, retires with a career record of 39-5 (36 KO).

The slugger from Trelew, Argentina came onto the world scene in 2010, when he faced Zab Judah, losing a highly controversial split decision. He lost another controversial decision to Devon Alexander in 2011. It was clear from both outings, though, that Matthysse could fight, as he put both Judah and Alexander on the canvas and arguably deserved to win both fights.

From there, he went on a six-fight win streak, scoring dominant stoppage wins over Humberto Soto, Olusegun Ajose, and Lamont Peterson, among others. His TKO-3 victory over Peterson had many thinking that Matthysse may be the world’s best fighter and 140 pounds, and demand was high for a bout with unbeaten Danny Garcia.

That fight came to pass in September 2013, paired with the huge Mayweather-Canelo bout in Las Vegas. It didn’t go Matthysse’s way. Though he fought valiantly and competitively, he was beaten cleanly by Garcia.

Matthysse rattled off wins over John Molina Jr, Roberto Ortiz, and Ruslan Provodnikov after that, then faced Viktor Postol for a world title in 2015. In a stunning turn of events, Postol didn’t just beat Matthysse, he knocked him out in the 10th round, something nobody saw coming.

Matthysse moved to 147 pounds after that, beating Emmanuel Taylor and Tewa Kiram, before accepting the fight with Pacquiao, the biggest opportunity of his career. Pacquiao stopped Matthysse in the seventh round, dominating the bout and putting him on the mat in the third, fifth, and seventh rounds.

In the end, Matthysse goes out on the biggest fight of his career, taking the chance against a living legend and finding himself outgunned. He’ll go down as an exciting fighter, someone fun to watch with great power, but also it has to be said that he came up short, controversially or not, in all of his biggest fights.

We say happy trails to Lucas Matthysse, and wish him all the best in his retirement.