Errol Spence Jr retired from boxing after losing a unanimous decision to Tim Tszyu in Sydney, drawing a line under a career that once saw him hold three of the sport's four major welterweight belts.

The fight took place on 26 July 2026 local time at Afterpay Arena in Sydney Olympic Park, promoted by No Limit Boxing and broadcast in the United States as a PBC Fight Night on Prime Video PPV (Premier Boxing Champions). Tszyu won comfortably on all three scorecards — 118-110, 117-111, and 117-111 (BBC Sport).

Asked afterward whether this was the end, Spence did not hesitate. "I think yeah, for sure," he said (BBC Sport). He later posted on his official Instagram account: "Now it's time to go home with my family and start a new life" (Instagram).

Spence, 36, had been away from the ring for three years before making the trip to Australia (Dallas Morning News). The layoff showed. He had lost three of his previous four fights heading in, including a seventh-round retirement loss in a rematch with Fundora (Fox Sports). For this camp he also switched trainers, working with Ronnie Shields after spending his entire career under Derek James (Instagram).

The changes were not enough to turn back the clock. Tszyu, fighting on home soil, controlled the bout from the outset and never let Spence settle into the rhythm that once made him one of the most feared operators at 147 pounds — the welterweight division where Spence reigned for years.

Spence's peak was formidable. He won his first world title in 2017 by stopping Kell Brook at Bramall Lane in Sheffield, and went on to collect the WBA, WBC, and IBF belts, making him a unified champion — a fighter holding more than one of boxing's four major titles at once (BBC Sport). He was unbeaten in 28 fights before running into Terence Crawford, who handed him his first defeat and took those belts.

For Tszyu, the win carries its own weight. He said beating Spence "tops a world title" and made clear he wants a shot at a belt next (BBC Sport). A victory over a fighter of Spence's pedigree, even a diminished version, strengthens his case for another crack at the top of the division.

Spence, though, sounded like a man at peace with his decision. He said he is leaving boxing with his faculties intact and his family still by his side (BBC Sport) — a fact that matters in a sport where too many fighters have stayed too long.

What makes this retirement land quietly rather than dramatically is that Spence chose the exit himself. No commission pulled his licence. No doctor told him to stop. He sized up where he was, where the sport was taking him, and walked away while he still could.