Amir Khan has revealed his love for the sport of boxing had long gone before hanging the gloves up for good last month.
After winning a silver medal at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Khan became a poster boy for British boxing and went onto become a unified super lightweight world champion, but Khan has also been on the wrong end of losses to the likes of Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez and Terence Crawford.
Khan's time as a boxer came to an end in February when he was stopped by domestic rival Kell Brook in February, but it took the 35-year-old another three months to officially announce his retirement.
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Speaking to Sky Sports, Khan discussed the relief he has experienced since he made the decision to bring his boxing career to an end.
"It’s been tough out there. It’s not been easy. Boxing has to be the toughest sport. But boxing has been really good to me and I thank all the fans, I thank all the people, Sky and everyone I’ve worked with,” Khan said.
“I’m not going to miss it – being punched in the face, but I had some great times honestly… It’s just that pressure off my shoulders now, that I know that I’m retired.
“Normally what would happen is that I’d get a phone call saying, ‘I’ve got a fight for you.’ But now that I’ve announced that I’m retired… To be honest with you I lost the love for the sport around four or five years ago.”
