Nelson Junior began his boxing career at amateur level in 2017 and even started training under Lartekwei Lartey.
However, he struggled to juggle boxing and schooling and later decided to quit the sport after graduating from the University of Ghana.
Explaining why Nelson Junior’s boxing career didn’t last, Azumah Nelson said his son realised he couldn’t cope with the demands of the sport.
“He realised that boxing is not for ‘Dada ba’ people. It’s a sport for hustlers and people from not-too-good backgrounds,” the former WBC featherweight champion told Dan Kwaku Yeboah TV.
“I’m not worried that he quit the sport because I wasn’t the one receiving the blows. He was the one receiving it and realized he could not take the blows.
“I introduced him to boxing at a young age and he grew up with it but he later realized he couldn’t do it again. It’s a difficult sport that requires dedication and determination. You wake up at 4am to go for jogging and then hit the gym a few hours later.”
Azumah Nelson made his name in the 1980s and 1990s, having held the WBC featherweight and super featherweight titles.
He is widely regarded as one of the best boxers to have ever emerged from Africa, having swept a number of titles during his career.
The 65-year-old fought a total of 47 bouts, winning a staggering 39 times, drawing twice and losing just six.
The Ghanaian boxing legend has also been inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, New York.