Ricky Hatton

Ricky Hatton
MBE
Hatton in 2009
Born
Richard John Hatton

(1978-10-06) 6 October 1978 (age 45)
Stockport,
Greater Manchester,
England
Other names
  • The Hitman
  • The Manchester Mexican
  • The Pride of Hyde[2]
  • Fatton[2]
Statistics
Weight(s)
Height5 ft 6 in (168 cm)[1]
Reach65 in (165 cm)[1]
StanceOrthodox
Boxing record
Total fights48
Wins45
Wins by KO32
Losses3
Ricky Hatton's voice
First published 30 May 2022

Richard John Hatton MBE (born 6 October 1978) is a British former professional boxer who competed between 1997 and 2012, and has since worked as a boxing promoter and trainer.[3][4][5] During his boxing career he held multiple world championships in the light-welterweight division, and one at welterweight. In 2005 he was named Fighter of the Year by The Ring magazine, the Boxing Writers Association of America, and ESPN.

In 2000, Hatton won the British light-welterweight title, followed by the World Boxing Union (WBU) title the following year; he made a record fifteen successful defences of the latter from 2001 to 2004. He reached the pinnacle of his career in 2005 by defeating Kostya Tszyu for the International Boxing Federation (IBF), Ring and lineal titles. This was followed up later that year with a victory over Carlos Maussa to claim the World Boxing Association (WBA) title (Super version), thereby becoming a unified light-welterweight world champion.

Making his welterweight debut in 2006, Hatton won a tough fight against WBA champion Luis Collazo to win a world title in his second weight class. A return to light-welterweight in 2007 saw him win the vacant IBF title for a second time, as well as the International Boxing Organization (IBO) title. In the same year, Hatton had his career first defeat against Floyd Mayweather Jr. in an attempt to win the World Boxing Council (WBC), Ring and lineal welterweight titles. This defeat took a severe toll on Hatton's wellbeing, as did a second defeat in 2009 when he lost his IBO, Ring and lineal light-welterweight titles to Manny Pacquiao.

After Hatton's career was put on a long hiatus, rumours of a comeback continued to circulate the media over the next several years.[6][7] In 2011, Hatton announced his retirement from the sport,[8][9] but in 2012, more than three years after his last fight, he confirmed his comeback.[10] A loss to Vyacheslav Senchenko in his first match back prompted Hatton to immediately announce his final retirement.[11]

Hatton has been lauded as one of the most beloved and popular British boxers of all time, with a raucous fan base that travelled in their tens of thousands across the Atlantic to support him.[9][12][13][14] He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame as part of the class of 2024.[15]

  1. ^ a b Showtime Championship Boxing tale of the tape prior to the Kostya Tszyu fight.
  2. ^ a b "How does Ricky Hatton lose 40lbs?". BBC. 7 December 2007. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
  3. ^ Anon (24 June 2005). "Birth of a British champion, but can Ricky Hatton take the pressure at this level?". University of York's Student website. Retrieved 7 July 2007.
  4. ^ Kieran Mulvaney (17 January 2007). "Hatton finds Las Vegas stage is his calling". ESPN. Retrieved 1 October 2007. "It makes me proud to be British"
  5. ^ "Hatton retires again after ninth round knockout". Yahoo! news. Reuters. Archived from the original on 30 December 2012.
  6. ^ Ricky Hatton announces boxing comeback Daily Telegraph, 13 January 2010
  7. ^ Ricky Hatton's Comeback to happen at Welterweight BoxingScene, 11 January 2010
  8. ^ Ben Dirs. "Ben Dirs: The Hitman fires a parting shot". BBC. Retrieved 11 August 2014.
  9. ^ a b Davies, Gareth A. (7 July 2011). "Ricky Hatton announces retirement from boxing". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 10 July 2011. Retrieved 7 July 2011.
  10. ^ "Ricky Hatton comeback: Hitman returns in November". BBC. 14 September 2012. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
  11. ^ Ben Dirs (25 November 2012). "BBC Sport – Ricky Hatton retires after Vyacheslav Senchenko defeat". BBC Sport. Retrieved 11 August 2014.
  12. ^ Dillon, John (17 September 2010). "Savage truth behind Ricky Hatton's high life". Daily Express. Northern & Shell. Retrieved 26 August 2016.
  13. ^ Dirs, Ben (2 March 2011). "Hatton emerges from the shadows". BBC Sport. BBC. Retrieved 26 August 2016.
  14. ^ Anderson, David (26 November 2012). "There's only one Ricky Hatton: Why there'll never be another fighter quite like The Hitman"/ Daily Mirror. Trinity Mirror. Retrieved 26 August 2016.
  15. ^ Joseph Santoliquito (7 December 2023). "Diego Corrales and Ricky Hatton top the 2024 Hall of Fame Class". The Ring. Retrieved 13 June 2024.