British welterweight Lee Purdy has revealed that a series of eye operations could force him to retire from boxing.
Purdy has undergone three operations, with a fourth due at the end of March, after he severely damaged his retina in his defeat to Leonard Bundu in December, and the former British champion has indicated that he could fail the necessary tests to secure a boxing licence.
The 26-year-old told BBC Sport: "They've told me that they'll get some vision back, but they don't know how much. I'd love to be able to fight again, I believe that there is more to come.
I'm absolutely devastated at the moment. Before the Bundu fight, I thought that if I lose this, that's it. I didn't have an excuse after the fight. But in a way, I'm glad that my eye was bad, because I've got something to fall back on. Somewhere in that fight, I was fighting with one eye.
"But it's just how good my vision is going to be because I have to pass exams each year. If it's not good enough to pass the eye tests, that's career over."
Purdy challenged for the IBF title in May, but suffered a seventh-round loss to American Devon Alexander.
Darren Plant
