Photo by Chris Farina/Top Rank Promotions

BUENOS AIRES – Inactive since his middleweight championship loss to Miguel Cotto in June of 2014 and living away from the spotlight in his adoptive Spain, Sergio Martinez has continued his treatment for a series of injuries in his right knee in hopes of avoiding a possible career-ending surgery. However, the results have not been as good as expected and the former two-division titlist has now declared he is much closer to retirement in a recent interview with an Argentine TV network.

“I would like to go on but my injuries are starting to complicate even my daily life,” said Martinez, now 40 years old, in an interview published on Tuesday by TyC.com in Buenos Aires. “My meniscus is torn apart. I’ve had to wear insoles in my shoes to be able to walk properly without feeling any pain.”

Martinez (51-3-2, 28 knockouts) has dabbled in stand-up comedy since his last bout and continues co-promoting fights under his own promotional banner, Maravilla Box Promotions, but he has been adamant about officially announcing his retirement in the hopes that a miraculous recovery would put him in the ring even for a farewell bout in front of his adoring countrymen.

But nowadays, even that scenario seems implausible.

“I don’t think so,” said Martinez, when asked about this possibility, insisting on his thought that he’d only return to fight an opponent “of a certain level.”

“I am honestly not interested, I already had my big night in Velez [Sarsfield, a soccer stadium where he fought Martin Murray in 2013 in front of 55.000 people]. Anything else would be disrespectful to the fans.”

Even though he stopped short of officially announcing his retirement, Martinez did indicate that the extent of his injuries is bad enough to likely require at least one surgery procedure to even give him a chance of a normal everyday life, let alone a return to boxing.

According to Martinez, easy tasks such as waking up from his bed or walking to the bakery every morning are becoming increasingly difficult. “Could you imagine a training camp feeling like that?” asked Martinez to his interviewer, rhetorically. “It would be impossible.”

True to his fighting spirit, Martinez refused to give a date for an official announcement on his retirement but he did indicate that his decision is imminent.

“In the next few weeks, I believe I will make a definitive decision,” said Martinez. “I wouldn’t give you odds but it’s very difficult. I want to avoid a surgery but it appears it will be impossible,” said the fighter, who also indicated he will continue his career in show business.