Anthony Ogogo Struggled With Suicidal Thoughts Following Retiring From Boxing

Anthony Ogogo was rising up the ranks of boxing until an unfortunate incident forced him to reconsider his career. The former Olympic boxer had 11 wins and only one loss in his professional boxing career.

Ogogo suffered a nasty eye injury during his 2016 bout against Craig Cunningham. The injury turned out to be a life-changing event for Ogogo and he was forced to retire from boxing in 2019.

The boxer-turned-pro wrestler sat down with Independent UK for a new interview. Ogogo said he dealt with depression after retiring from boxing and that his wife helped him escape suicidal thoughts.

“I retired on March 11, 2019 I remember it like the back of my hand, my last fight was basically three years before – October 2016 – and there was no conceivable way that I was thinking I’ve walked to the ring as a 27-year-old, as a baby, entering my prime, for the last time.

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“I spent £100,000 on surgeries in America, that was everything I earned in boxing, and much more beside. I sold my car, remortgaged my house to pay for surgery that didn’t work. Then I had an injection in my eye, it was a Botox injection to weaken the muscle to try to bring the eye to a better position – it missed the intended muscle and permanently paralyzed the nerve in my left eye.

“I gave my life to boxing and I had nothing to show for it other than bad vision; no money, no belts and no titles. I lost my career, I lost my passion, lost my livelihood and I’ve had to sit and watch people who have half of my ability grow and become world champions and multimillionaires. No exaggeration.

“I was generally suicidal and there’s one night in my life, it was December 2019, if my wife wasn’t home that day, I probably would have ended my life that night because I was beyond the brink but thankfully my wife and I were able to address my life. She literally saved my life – that was my ground zero and I’ve built up from that.”

Ogogo’s life changed for the better when he crossed over into pro wrestling, signing with All Elite Wrestling in 2019. Ogogo debuted for British promotion Progress earlier this year. Most recently, he performed on AEW Dark: Elevation. We will have to see what’s next for Ogogo, but he is certainly in a great place to showcase his abilities in AEW.

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