 In his last bout on 1 June 1954, he lost his British featherweight title to Sammy McCarthy in London's White City, quitting in the eighth round when he experienced a loss of vision that apparently ended his boxing career.McCarthy was an aspiring London boxer, eight years younger than Clayton.In an interview a few days after the fight, Clayton admitted to having had very little vision in his left eye through much of his boxing career, and announced his boxing retirement.