Ricky Hatton to make ring return in 2010

Johner

Manchester's former two-weight world champion Ricky Hatton has confirmed he will return to the ring in 2010.

"I'm going to have one more fight, maybe two - it depends on the first fight," said Hatton.

"No opponent has been confirmed... there's been no date confirmed. But... I am going to have one more fight."

In his last fight last May, the 31-year-old Hatton was knocked out in the second round in Las Vegas by Filipino great Manny Pacquiao.

Mexican three-weight world champion Juan Manuel Marquez, the current WBA lightweight champion, has been mentioned as a possible foe, as has IBF light-welterweight champion Juan Urango, who Hatton outpointed in 2007.

Hatton's only other defeat in a 47-fight career was to Floyd Mayweather Jr in 2007, but the severity of his defeat by Pacquiao led many to urge him to retire.

But Hatton never officially hung up his gloves, and it was announced last November that negotiations had already begun between his camp and Golden Boy Promotions, who handle the 36-year-old Marquez.

"If Ricky does carry on it would be an ideal fight for him to take on Marquez," said Gareth Williams, Hatton's lawyer and promotional partner.

Richard Schaefer, head of Golden Boy, said: "Juan Manuel accepted the challenge and would love to come to Manchester."

Marquez lost his last outing to the returning Mayweather Jr in September, finding himself outclassed and outpointed over 12 rounds.

However, that was only his fifth defeat in 56 fights, while he has also fought Pacquiao twice, drawing the first encounter in 2004 before losing on a controversial split decision in 2008.

Marquez has held world titles at featherweight, super-featherweight and lightweight, and a fight against Hatton would almost certainly take place at light-welterweight, Hatton's natural division.

Hatton will head to Australia for a holiday next week and plans to start getting in shape immediately on his return.

"I go on holiday next week with my girlfriend to Australia and then when I come back, even though I haven't got a date yet, I'm going to go straight into training because weight-wise I have had a little bit more to carry than I normally do," he said.

"So I'm going to go straight in training, shed the weight and then, when the date comes, do my usually 12-week training camp.

"We're looking at the IBF champion Juan Urango, who I've already fought and beaten. It's got to be a top-10 ranked pound-for-pound fighter or a world champion of some sort.

"I've boxed at such a high level and I could not have one more fight and people look at me and go 'he's just had this fight just to knock someone over and end on top'. I want people to say 'give Ricky his credit - he finished at the top'.

"You can see I've set the wheels in motion for retirement - I've got my promotional company now, got my health and fitness, got my clothing brand.

"I'm not going to have too many more fights. At the minute I'm definitely just going to have one more."

:pac:

Stay away Ricky.

joker77

"You can see I've set the wheels in motion for retirement - I've got my promotional company now, got my health and fitness, got my clothing brand.

Health and fitness? really Ricky?

ronbyrne2005

Why doesnt he move up a few divisions then with the extra muscle he wont suffer with his weight as much,

joker77

What extra muscle? It's all from drinking 15+ pints of Guinness and eating fries and pies!

Johner

Khan would embarrass Ricky!

walshb

I couldn't be arsed if he does or doesn't come back. He is well past his peak and the diet and lifestyle have caught up with him. After shedding the three or so stones, will he have anything in the tank to fight?

Khan destroys him, Juan should be too good, even at his age.

alanceltic

walshb wrote: »

I couldn't be arsed if he does or doesn't come back.

True but the lure of the $$$ will be too much to refuse

digme

Johner wrote: »

:pac:
Stay away Ricky.

Moneys not what's on hattons mind i think it's more to do with the pacquaio fight.
I think it's good news.And here's why.He cannot get the Pacquiao fight out of his mind and for him to rest a little easier at night he has to have another fight and do his best,which he didn't do in that fight.
I wish him all the best and hope he wins,but not against MarqueZ.

walshb

digme wrote: »

Moneys not what's on hattons mind i think it's more to do with the pacquaio fight.
I think it's good news.And here's why.He cannot get the Pacquiao fight out of his mind and for him to rest a little easier at night he has to have another fight and do his best,which he didn't do in that fight.
I wish him all the best and hope he wins,but not against MarqueZ.

That damn Pacquiao loss is haunting owl Ricky; sure wasn't he winning it "by a country mile until the knockout.":rolleyes:

digme

walshb wrote: »

That damn Pacquiao loss is haunting owl Ricky; sure wasn't he winning it "by a country mile until the knockout.":rolleyes:

Oh the irony,but what's your take on it?Money?

walshb

digme wrote: »

Oh the irony,but what's your take on it?Money?

Whether one likes it or not, money has to come into this some way. Now, there are other factors too, like pride and wanting to retire on a win etc. But, Hatton knows that his loyal
fans will pay to watch him no matter how good or bad he is. He knows they are suckers, so he will take full advantage.

He more than likely doesn't need the money, but that doesn't mean he doesn't want the money.

I used to really like Hatton, but lately, I am wearing thin.

luckyboy88

He needs to stay away and concentrate on getting his client Mr. Macklin some big time fights cause from what i'v seen he is a masive prospect for a World Title

joepenguin

I agree that if he is going to promote then he should stick to that. His company is in its infancy and if he tries to juggle both he could ruin the end of his boxing career and the start of his promo career. With that in mind having just the one more fight and calling it a day would be the way to go.
He says he will fight a top 10 p4p fighter or a champ. p4p terms that can only mean JMM, suppose you could argue Nate Cambell and Margarito (not top ten p4p but who cares) basically as long as they have a belt or a name. Cant see it been Margo. Cambell at 147 might be a good call. Even though Hatton-Marquez would be a great fight i wouldnt like to see any of them lose.

The 140lb champs:

Urango IBF
Kahn WBA
Bradley WBO
Alexander WBC

"Name" Contenders: Casamayor, Juan Diaz. Cambell.

The 147 champs:

Mosely / Berto: wbc and wba.
Jan Zaveck (who?) .. IBF
"Ahhhhh... nothing personal, i just do my job" WBO
N'dou: IBO ... Just throwing it out there.
Vyacheslav Senchenko: wba regular.

Name contenders: Judah? He's already fought Catillo.


Lightweight champs: (dont rule out him doing a floyd)
Marquez: WBO and WBA, ring.
Valero: WBC
Guzman/Funeka? IBF.

Contenders: Katsidis, Barerra

Now I know a few of them arent worth mentioning but thats your initial shortlist unless he is willing to fight a losing battle for a payday... eg pac/pbf rematch.

Cambell or Marquez at 147 is probably his best risk/reward ratio if he needs to fight at that weight.

EDIT: I feel Ricky is still good enough to win a belt and take on a good challenge. Just that I'm not ruling out him wanting to go out against someone people know of.

clubwelly

I know there was talk of Katsidis a while ago. Poor Ricky should stay retired. I wouldn't like to see Khan beat him and with Freddy in his corner I could see that happening

magma69

I would love to see an all British show down between Hatton and Khan. I don't think it would be the mismatch some on here are making it out to be either. You got to remember the only two people to beat Hatton were the number 1 p4p boxers at the time he fought them. Khan has lost to bums and hasn't beaten a world class fighter (who wasn't shot) as of yet. I think if Hatton didn't let himself turn into a fat mess after losing against Pac he would knock out Khan. Right now it's very difficult to judge how badly that unhealthy living is going to affect him.

Dempsey

His yo yo dieting is catching up with him. I reckon he'll struggle to make the weight this time, whoever he fights. I know he's always ballooned and shed it but I wonder if he can do it this time and be able to fight anywhere near the level he used to

walshb

magma69 wrote: »

I would love to see an all British show down between Hatton and Khan. I don't think it would be the mismatch some on here are making it out to be either. You got to remember the only two people to beat Hatton were the number 1 p4p boxers at the time he fought them. Khan has lost to bums and hasn't beaten a world class fighter (who wasn't shot) as of yet. I think if Hatton didn't let himself turn into a fat mess after losing against Pac he would knock out Khan. Right now it's very difficult to judge how badly that unhealthy living is going to affect him.

Well, for Khan's sake, he better hope you are not right, because if Fatton at this stage can beat you, then hang your gloves up. He's well past it, and yes he was beaten by two greats, but he was well beaten too. It's not like he was close to winning either fight.

I don't think Ricky wants a risky fight, so he will have to be very careful who he selects. He selects Khan or Bradley or Berto etc, he is in for a hiding

consultech

I am one of the biggest Ricky Hatton fans in the world; But I won't be ponying up the 23-odd quid for this farce, whenever it comes around.

I wish him all the best 'n all, but it's a bit of a joke at this stage.

magma69

walshb wrote: »

Well, for Khan's sake, he better hope you are not right, because if Fatton at this stage can beat you, then hang your gloves up. He's well past it, and yes he was beaten by two greats, but he was well beaten too. It's not like he was close to winning either fight.

I don't think Ricky wants a risky fight, so he will have to be very careful who he selects. He selects Khan or Bradley or Berto etc, he is in for a hiding

Cotto took a serious hiding off Pac too, does that mean Cotto is washed up etc? If I was betting I would just about side with Khan but it would by no means be an easy fight. Khan is super chinny and Hatton can pack a punch. I think you are writing him off a little too easily. Anyway it's kind of pointless debating it because it most likely won't happen. Hatton distanced himself from the idea in a recent interview. Saying he and Frank Warren are not exactly the best of friends and the fact him and Khan are close buddies would put him off. He mentioned Urango and Marquez as possibilities.

ragg

The mayweather fight was a better fight then hatton is given credit for!!

The ref wouldn't give hatton a break and you know anyone who has to resort to trying to knock mayweather out or fighting overly aggressively against him is on a hiding to nothing.

Pac absolutely annihilated him though

walshb

I can' really give Hatton much credit for the Floyd fight. I saw him do feck all really. Walk in walk in walk in. Floyd was far from great too. But, something tells me that if Floyd could fight him again, it wouldn't take him long.

As for Hatton packing a punch, at this stage, I don't think he has the delivery system or speed. He can body punch, but he never had real KO
power. He usually grinds his foe down with accumulation. This won't work against Khan. He will be eating far too much leather.

Magma, I never used the words washed up, but if you believe Hatton is still a force and close to his
2004-2007 peak, then I think you are wrong. He is past his peak, and it shows.

joker77

Agreed - I think at this stage of both their careers Hatton would really want to avoid Khan.
The JMM option is the most likely I think. Wonder would he go for Bradley, doubt it.

megadodge

walshb wrote: »

That damn Pacquiao loss is haunting owl Ricky; sure wasn't he winning it "by a country mile until the knockout.":rolleyes:

Jesus, I can't believe you took that line seriously.

That quote was typical Hatton at his self-deprecatory / sarcastic best. It's one of the reasons people like him so much. He has a sense of humour !!

It's so obvious that he was joking that I never thought anyone would be naive enough to think otherwise.

walshb

megadodge wrote: »

Jesus, I can't believe you took that line seriously.

That quote was typical Hatton at his self-deprecatory / sarcastic best. It's one of the reasons people like him so much. He has a sense of humour !!

It's so obvious that he was joking that I never thought anyone would be naive enough to think otherwise.

I usually am quite quick to spot sarcasm; so, now that I think of it, and knowing Hatton, that's probably true, damn, he did convince me though.

MrDap

Would he take on Cotto?

joepenguin

So many variables... when he was defending his wbu title he was facing faded b+ fighters at best, got a slightly faded A level fighter in tzsyu, fought 3 b/c level fighters and didnt look amazing in doing so. beat a faded castillo. All while in his prime lets say.

Then he fights mayweather and loses, people start saying he wasnt the fighters he once was. Personally i think in 2005 this would have been competitive but on that night you could have allowed ricky to bearhug and have micky vann as the third man he was still gonna lose. Mayweather stayed in 2nd gear all night. Simply too good.

Then he fights Lazcano and looked crap... arent we all allowed an off night every now and then. Mallignaggi was a good fight, he beat a good albeit light punching contender. These will be 18-24 months in the past by the time his next fight comes around.

Against Pac he could have faired better with a good camp / followed game plan etc but again he would have lost anyway. Just not as quickly.

The lifestyle may be catching up on him but he has always done well in spite of it and if he can still make 140 he is still a top contender. At 147 i hold no hope for him unless he brings another 140 guy up with him.

PrettyBoy

Does anyone take him seriously anymore? He was never a world class fighter. When he went up against world class fighters, they humiliated him.

magma69 wrote: »

I think if Hatton didn't let himself turn into a fat mess after losing against Pac he would knock out Khan. Right now it's very difficult to judge how badly that unhealthy living is going to affect him.

He was a fat mess long before the fight with Pac, hence the much deserved "Fatton" nickname. He stuffs his face and drinks like a fish and then when he has a fight coming up he trains and loses the weight, then when the fight is all said said and done he goes back to eating ten pies a day and washing them down with fifteen pints of Guinness.

MrDap wrote: »

Would he take on Cotto?

Cotto would annihilate Fatton. Fatton knows that.

weedfreedomtinp

dont embarrass your self hatton your crap

efb

Never got the Fatton hype, was delighted when PBF bounced his off the ringpost, and I WAS THERE!!!!

joepenguin

PrettyBoy wrote: »

He was never a world class fighter.

In fairness he was world class and lets not write him off until he gets beat by a top ten 140lb / 147n fighter.Then he is no longer world class, he was never up to much at 147 anyway though. He was no Mayweather or Pacman in his career, he (through no fault of his own) wasnt all he was hyped up to be, but he was world class in spite of his unhealthy lifestyle.

efb

I would say hatton wasn't World Class either. One win by retirement against a previously retired world class fighter doesnt make him a great.

yabadabado

he was never world class but was a good fighter but at this stage he should give it a miss.his lifestyle has taken its toll.i reckon he s about 3 stone overweight atm

Dirty whore!

Ricky hattons accomplishments in the ring **** all over anything bernard dunne has done and yes ricky was truly world class just not p4p status.

joepenguin

Dirty whore! wrote: »

Ricky hattons accomplishments in the ring **** all over anything bernard dunne has done and yes ricky was truly world class just not p4p status.

I agree, always fought a top five/ten fighter / belt holder. He did very well with his skill set. Would have got more Kudos had he fought Witter but hey. Between 2005 and 2009 he was THE man at 140. Maybe it wasnt the most stacked division all the way through and you had maussa as a champ at one stage but hey.

And how dare Bernard Dunne win a european and world title! Just as bad as that Kahn fella, or Froch, haye, woods, rees, calzaghe. In fact all those recent world champions in this part of the world that havent been mentioned previously in this thread. Who do they think they are?

To relate your Dunne comment to this thread Ricky as far as I'm aware was never in a position where he HAD to fight the most feared man in the division like Dunne did with Poonswat. Yes he fought the world best fighters and lost but lest face it? who would turn down a fight with mayweather or pacman? (thats name is not mayweather lol) but seriously, that was a chance at glory and a gauranteed bundle of cash.

Do you think Matt Hatton, Ryan Rhodes, Nate Cambell etc would be calling Mayweather out if they made a regular amount of money with no worldwide exposure for even been in the ring? My guess is they wouldnt. But they will have a punchers chance and a whoooooole lot of money given mayweathers stautus.

So Ricky achieved a lot, beat world champions and fought the best, but lets not forget that they were big draw$ and future hall of famers. Nobody in the right mind would turn them down in or around the same weight.

walshb

For a guy, with lets face it, limited pure boxing skills, he went very far. He was tough and rugged and fit and took a great shot. Did he fight greats? Well,
he didn't fight the best ever, but he didn't fight bums either. I would say a handful of his wins were against good/very good opposition. The rest was
against not so great opposition.

Dirty whore!

walshb wrote: »

For a guy, with lets face it, limited pure boxing skills, he went very far. He was tough and rugged and fit and took a great shot. Did he fight greats? Well,
he didn't fight the best ever, but he didn't fight bums either. I would say a handful of his wins were against good/very good opposition. The rest was
against not so great opposition.

Bernard dunne won an EBU title fair and square and his promoter got him a shot at a version of the WBA title because bernard would not make it on his on merit without that voluntary from cordoba, people like bernard dunne get voluntarys because they are seen as easy money/targets. let him fight the dustbin man thats bernards real level. Ricky hatton was able to sell the MGM grand by himself while bernard cant sell out a hen-house in castlebar at the moment.

megadodge

The best boxer in the world at his weight division for 2-3 years was not "world class"??

I'm confused.

mink_man

not sure about it...its been a while since hes fought and he could only have gotten worse than the last time....i hope for him its not a good boxer.

joepenguin

Dirty whore! wrote: »

Ricky hatton was able to sell the MGM grand by himself

He must have been fighting a real nobody (ba-doom-tish)

celestial

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2eIjZJ2DJ4

joepenguin

celestial wrote: »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2eIjZJ2DJ4

lol. hit the nail on the head there

seen this on eastside:

http://www.eastsideboxing.com/news.php?p=22492&more=1

Manny is stripped of the ibo 140 lb title as he is now campaigning at welter. Probably Hattons best shot at a world title since he can choose his opponent. Thats if he can still make 140.

mark renton

Dirty whore! wrote: »

Bernard dunne won an EBU title fair and square and his promoter got him a shot at a version of the WBA title because bernard would not make it on his on merit without that voluntary from cordoba, people like bernard dunne get voluntarys because they are seen as easy money/targets. let him fight the dustbin man thats bernards real level. Ricky hatton was able to sell the MGM grand by himself while bernard cant sell out a hen-house in castlebar at the moment.

:rolleyes:

mark renton

celestial wrote: »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2eIjZJ2DJ4

Either they got that script off a thread on here or walshb has been plagerising

richierichballs

Ricky is crazy coming back, He is going to have terrible trouble making 140,
He should move upto 147 imo!
So many good fights for him in there,
Hatton and Cotto I would like to see,
Although Hatton and Marquez at 140 is an interesting fight also.....
Both guys I think would beat him comfortably......

ragg

if he cuts the body fat before he signs for the fight, i'd be more confident for him - but i can't see him making the weight, while keeping any strength otherwise.

I mean, look at the recent pics of him - he is massive

yabadabado

ragg wrote: »

if he cuts the body fat before he signs for the fight, i'd be more confident for him - but i can't see him making the weight, while keeping any strength otherwise.

I mean, look at the recent pics of him - he is massive

I met him before xmas and as i said in an earlier post i reckon he is about 3 stone overweight.he is nearly unrecognisible from 2 years ago.

nacho libre

I'm sick of his excuses. Against Mayweather it was the ref's fault. Now he's citing training difficulty. ok the latter might affect your preparation but even without distractions the result was always going to be the same. I mean is this guy serious when he says he was winning the fight with Pacman before the ko???

The people around him should look in the mirror. Well, perhaps they did advise him not to come back and he wouldn't listen. it's seems it's the old story of a fighter who doesn't want to admit to himself that whatever he had is gone.

joepenguin

nacho libre wrote: »

it's seems it's the old story of a fighter who doesn't want to admit to himself that whatever he had is gone.

What he has now and what he had 3-4 years ago is pretty much the same thing imo.

Put a 2010 Ricky in the ring with a:
2008 Mallignaggi
2007 Castillo
2005 Tszyu
2003 Phillips
2003 Tackie

Would you bet against him in any fight? Maybe he couldnt wear Tszyu down the way he did when he was a bit younger but its not as if he was ever on the same level as Mayweather or Pac in the first place.

nacho libre

joepenguin wrote: »

What he has now and what he had 3-4 years ago is pretty much the same thing imo.

Put a 2010 Ricky in the ring with a:
2008 Mallignaggi
2007 Castillo
2005 Tszyu
2003 Phillips
2003 Tackie

Would you bet against him in any fight? Maybe he couldnt wear Tszyu down the way he did when he was a bit younger but its not as if he was ever on the same level as Mayweather or Pac in the first place.

It's true he was never on their level, but with the punishment he's taken from those two, combined with the evidence that his punch resistance has been on the wane even before the brutal ko by Pacman, the danger increases that fighters, who he would have beaten in the past, will now beat him if they have any sort of power.

megadodge

nacho libre wrote: »

I mean is this guy serious when he says he was winning the fight with Pacman before the ko???

No. He isn't.

See post no. 23.

walshb

joepenguin wrote: »

What he has now and what he had 3-4 years ago is pretty much the same thing imo.

Put a 2010 Ricky in the ring with a:
2008 Mallignaggi
2007 Castillo
2005 Tszyu
2003 Phillips
2003 Tackie
.

No, I think the years have caught up with him and the lifestyle has had its affects.
In 2005 Hatton seemed to have that extra intensity and speed and savagery.
It has been sorely missing in his last few fights from what I have seen.

Now, back then, skill wise he was still not very good. He was never a good boxer; but his
work rate and commitment and tenacity had a bit more to it. This declined as the years ticked and the diet and lifestyle caught up. His last "great" show was vs. Castillo, who was an absolute shell.

I would honestly pick a peak Tsyzu to take Rick out. Tsyzu did extreme;y well in the actual fight
and I think Tsyzu wasn't at peak. He was a better fighter 3-4 years prior to the Hatton bout