it is not a good sign when a fighter in talking openly about retirement before a big fight.
James DeGale: British boxer to consider retirement after fight with Chris Eubank Jr
James DeGale will consider retirement after his fight with fellow Briton Chris Eubank Jr in London later this month.
The 33-year-old vacated the IBF super-middleweight title in July having won a rematch against Caleb Truax.
He will face Eubank Jr in a super-middleweight fight at the O2 Arena on 23 February.
"I'm going to get this good win. After this good win I'll maybe knock it on the head. I don't know," he said.
DeGale lost the IBF title to Truax in December 2017 but reclaimed the belt against the American in April 2018.
He said the decision to vacate was to free him up to pursue "massive fights" rather than face mandatory defences ordered by the IBF.
"I could go on to have another three or four fights; I'm not too sure," he added.
"I'm in a good position where I'm happy and content in what I've done with my career. I've left my mark. I'm sitting nice.
"The hunger and desire hasn't been stronger. I've been training for this fight for a long, long time. Mentally, I'm ready; physically, I'm ready, I'm healthy. There's a lot of questions hanging over this fight as well, but the main one is how much have I got left? Am I declining, am I shot? We'll see."
DeGale's fights against American Truax followed a draw with Badou Jack. He stopped Colombian Fidel Monterrosa Munoz in his last fight in September.
Former WBA super-middleweight champion George Groves, touted as a potential future opponent for DeGale, retired in January.
"I didn't feel anything. I didn't even think about it," said DeGale of Groves' decision.
"I'm concentrating on my fight and what I want to do. I don't care about George Groves' career; he's retired. He thought it was the right time to get out of it and he's knocked it on the head."
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/boxing/47233259
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