Clinton Woods Silent Over Retirement Decision
By Terence Dooley
Clinton Woods is still recovering from the disappointment of Friday night’s loss to Tavoris Cloud. The 116-112 reverse across all three cards denied Woods the chance to win back his IBF world light-heavyweight title, and the man from Sheffield is now mulling over his future.
Woods performed well in the early going, fighting with a freshness that belied his 37 years; however, the fight slipped away from him as the rounds wore on, Cloud’s vitality breaking through in the form of big shots to the head of Woods. The Hollywood crown were thrilled by the ascension of Cloud, Tavoris grew in stature during this fight.
In the final few rounds it was a case of damage limitation for Woods, who managed to hang tough with his 27-year-old opponent.
Woods is now 42-5-1 (24), 0-3 (1) in his US fights. The popular Brit has not travelled well but he found some redemption in the Cloud loss. Woods’ previous US showcase had seen him meekly surrender his IBF title to Antonio Tarver, in going the distance with the highly touted Cloud, and holding his own early, Woods showed the US fans some of the grit and heart that had served him well during his title reign.
When pushed on his next step Woods was noncommittal, “I don't want to talk about retiring,” was his response when asked about whether he had reached the end of the line.
Certainly, Woods failed on the big stage, but there are challenges for him here in the UK, Nathan Cleverly is the current British and Commonwealth boss, and the young Welshman would relish a chance to test himself against Woods.
Still, Woods took some huge shots during those final rounds, the man from the Steel City has been a capable, and brave, top-level fighter for the past six-years, he has never shirked a challenge, and this could be the right time for him to retire.
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