DERRY-BORN MIDDLEWEIGHT John Duddy has called time on his career.

In a shock move, Duddy has scuppered a potential lucrative showdown with Andy Lee in the US. He says he’s passing up a $100,000 purse and a potential shot at a world title because of his decision.

The fight in Connecticut offered the 31-year-old an unexpected route back to world title contention after his defeat by Julio Cesar Chavez Jnr in June.

But he explained that the ‘fire is gone’.

After a great deal of soul-searching, I have decided to retire from boxing. In many ways, continuing to fight would be the easy course of action.

I have been offered the opportunity to fight Andy Lee on HBO for a purse in excess of $100,000.

A win would put me in position to fight for a world championship. This is not an opportunity that I cast aside lightly…I give you my word, I will not come back.

For more than 20 years I loved being a boxer, but I don’t love it anymore. I used to love going to the gym – now it is a chore

The fire has burned out and I know it will not return.

Duddy was to face  Lee on March 12 on an HBO undercard at the Foxwoods Resort and Casino in Uncasville, Connecticut, in an all-Irish fight on St Patrick’s Day week.

Duddy, 31, who had not yet signed a contract for the fight, would have earned a $100,000 purse plus a percentage of tickets he sold.

“I started watching my father train in the gym when I was five years old,” he added in the surprising statement, “I began fighting competitively at age 10. For more than 20 years, I loved being a boxer.”

I still feel that it’s an enormous honor to be a boxer. But I don’t love it anymore. I no longer have the enthusiasm and willingness to make the sacrifices that are necessary to honor the craft of prizefighting.

I used to love going to the gym. Now it’s a chore. I wish I still had the hunger, but I don’t. The fire has burned out. And I know myself well enough to know that it won’t return.

Duddy (29-2, 18 KOs) became an enormously popular fighter in New York, where he drew thousands of fans, especially ex-pat Irish, to no-nonsense, gutsy displays at Madison Square Garden.

ESPN’s Dan Rafael described him today as ‘the kind of fighter who would take three punches to land one. He engaged in several slugfests and bled on a regular basis’.

In fact, RTÉ’s Jimmy Magee this morning insisted Duddy bled too easily.

Title shot

In 2008, Duddy was a leading candidate to land a shot at then-middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik, but he was badly cut in a fight against Walid Smichet at Madison Square Garden.

He won but was ruled out for several months and ultimately lost the title shot.

An introspective-sounding Duddy continued:  ”I haven’t accomplished everything that I wanted to achieve in boxing. But I’ve had a rewarding career.

“I’ve enjoyed the satisfaction of winning 29 professional fights and learned lessons from my two losses. I’ve experienced the thrill of fighting in Madison Square Garden, Cowboys Stadium, and, also, my beloved Ireland with crowds cheering for me.

“I look forward to finding future challenges that bring as much passion and joy into my life as boxing has over the past 20 years.”