McCullough rubbishes 'quit' rumours

Former WBC bantamweight champion Wayne McCullough has laughed off rumours of an impending retirement from boxing, stating that he is far from finished in the ring.

The 33-year-old Las Vegas-based fighter has been dogged by accusations that since his split with former promoter Frank Warren, he is set to hang up his gloves.

"I don’t know where these rumours have come from, but they have no foundation whatsoever," explained McCullough. "I’ve never quit anything in my life. I’d love to fight on for another few years. I mean, I fought Daniel Zaragoza when he was 39 so why can’t I fight until I am that age myself?"

The Belfast man failed to wrestle the WBO featherweight crown from Scottish hard man Scott Harrison in Glasgow's Braehead arena last March and would clearly relish another title shot.

McCullough was said to have been disappointed with his parting from the Warren stable, having had thoughts of seeing out his career in the UK with the Hertford-based promoter.

Manager and wife Cheryl has said that, contrary to the view above, Wayne's split with Frank Warren was amicable.

"At the time, Wayne and Frank announced an amicable split with the hope of working together, if the need arises, in the future," she said.

Cheryl is currently working on securing a series of bouts for the ‘Pocket Rocket’ later this year.

"I don’t want to go into any meaningless fights at this stage of my career," Wayne McCullough added.

"I’ve a few possible opponents - Paulie Ayala, Johnny Tapia, big draws in the States. I’m planning on getting back into the ring in February or March at the earliest and we’ll see how things pan out from there."