The American fighter has opted to hang up his gloves at the age of 38 after making history by winning his final fight against Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez in September and becoming the first male fighter in the modern era to be an undisputed champion in three different weight classes.

Crawford said on his YouTube channel: "I'm stepping away from competition, not because I'm done fighting but because I've won a different kind of battle. The one where you walk away on your own terms.

"This isn't goodbye, this is the end of one fight and the beginning of another."

The boxer continued: "I gave this sport every breath I had. Every scar, every triumph, every ounce of my heart. I've made peace with what's next. And now, it's time. Thank you."

Crawford ends his career with a perfect 42-0 record in the ring and having held 18 major championships across five separate weight classes.

He said: "I spent my whole life chasing something. Not belts, not money, not headlines. But that feeling, the one you get when the world doubts you and you keep showing up and you keep proving everyone wrong."

Crawford boxed superbly to beat Canelo earlier this year but stressed that the highlight of his career was becoming the undisputed light welterweight champion in 2017.

He explained after the fight: "This moment [beating Canelo] was huge, but something about that first one – this little poor kid from Omaha, Nebraska, set his sights out to be a world champion and had to travel all across the world to become world champion.

"And on one night, all of the dreams came true. Those two moments are definitely special."