Koki Kameda, 28, retires from boxing after loss to Kono

Koki Kameda, who lost a decision in a super flyweight title fight against Kohei Kono on Friday in Chicago, has decided to retire from boxing at age 28, saying he knew before the fight that it would be his last.

Kameda has been banned from boxing in his home country of Japan, along with his brothers Tomoki and Daiki, after the Japan Boxing Commission refused to license any of them following controversy with their gym. The family has repeatedly been involved in one controversy or another.

Koki, the oldest of the trio, won world titles as a flyweight and bantamweight, and was looking to pick up a third belt against Kono at 115 pounds, but he came up short. If he is indeed retired -- since it's boxing, it's easy to second guess the statement -- he would leave the sport with a career record of 33-2 (18 KO).

Kameda says he wants to get out of boxing while still in good shape and fighting well:

"Frankly, I'm confident I can still compete," the 28-year-old said at Narita airport. "However, this is my aesthetic: the ultimate is to retire in good form."

After a lot of early success, it's been tougher sledding for the Kameda brothers the last couple of years. Daiki (29-5, 18 KO) has lost two in a row dating back to 2013, but did briefly hold a super flyweight belt from September to December 2013, and also held the WBA flyweight title in 2010 before moving up in weight. The youngest of the three, Tomoki (31-2, 19 KO) lost twice this year in a pair of fights with Jamie McDonnell.

At one time, the brothers all held world titles simultaneously.