Just a little under three months after a loss to interim WBC super middleweight champion David Benavidez, former middleweight champion David Lemieux has announced his retirement.
The news comes just days after a tragic 24-hour shooting spree in Montreal, Quebec, Canada that killed David Lemieux’s father, André Lemieux.
Despite being 33 years old, Lemieux (43-5, 36 KO) has been in boxing for what feels much longer than 15 years. Known for his devastating knockout power, he gained popularity after success in Montreal, being featured on multiple ESPN Friday Night Fights.
Rising in the ranks, he had a few setbacks, most notably losing to Marco Antonio Rubio in 2011, Lemieux won the IBF Middleweight title against Hassan N’Dam in 2015. It was the coronation of a career filled with highlights.
After gaining some mainstream exposure and signing with Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions, he had a highly anticipated unification bout with Gennadiy Golovkin in October 2015. Though Lemieux was defeated by ‘GGG’, it was the respect for his highlights and power that still had the Canadian as a can’t-miss combatant.
Lemieux boasts very notable wins in his career, defeating the likes of Hector Camacho Jr, Gabriel Rosado, Hassan N’Dam, Glen Tapia, Gary O’Sullivan, and the most notable highlight of his career: a jaw-dropping knockout of Curtis Stevens.
It was because of these kinds of highlights and a few wins after that loss to Golovkin that in 2017, Lemieux earned a title shot against rival Billy Joe Saunders in a losing result via unanimous decision for the WBO Middleweight title.
In his final fight, Lemieux had to this point moved up to 168 lbs and after the loss to Saunders, gone 5-0 in his next five fights, to which earned him a shot for the WBC Interim Super Middleweight title against younger, top contender David Benavidez.
Though once again in a losing effort for another world title, having the fight stopped in the third round after being visibly outpowered and outgunned, Lemieux came out of the fight with everyone’s respect for a gutsy performance where Lemieux never opted to give up, it was the corner who threw the towel in, rightfully so.
“I’ve accomplished a lot in the course of my career; I achieved my dream of becoming world champion, I’ve given the fans rousing fights by accepting every challenge that came my way. I devoted my life to training, to boxing, and now I want to cherish every minute with my family,” Lemieux said.
