By Nate Anderson: Whether he likes it or not, Ricky Hatton (44-1, 31 KOs) may have to earn his rematch the hard way by beating a trio of smaller fighters, such as lightweights Juan Diaz and Michael Katsidis, and super featherweight Manny Pacquiao, before he can make himself relevant for another fight with the great Floyd Mayweather Jr. Hatton, 29, has done little to warrant a rematch with Mayweather at this point. His last fight, a disappointing points win over veteran Mexican fighter Juan Lazcano, was a mixed bag where Hatton looked good at time, almost seeming to be back to his 2005 form, but then later in the fight Hatton began to get nailed with many of the same punches (short left hooks) that he was hurt with against Mayweather.
Indeed, the most worrisome part of all, however, was that Hatton was hurt badly twice by the relative light-hitting Lazcano, and if not for the assistance from the referee in the 10th round, Hatton may have been knocked out in the fight. To be sure, it wasn’t something that was missed by neither Mayweather nor Hatton’s promoters, Golden Boy, who will likely want him to take on several top fighters in order to rebuild his status as a near invincible punching machine.
Unfortunately, the way Hatton looked against Lazcano last week, it would probably be far too dangerous to continue to pit him against top junior welterweights in order to make that happen, hence the need for Hatton to fight high quality, smaller fighters, and ones with big names like the aforementioned Katsidis, Diaz and Pacquiao.
All of them are dangerous in their own weight divisions, but would likely be at a clear disadvantage against the short, stocky, bulldog-like Hatton. As good as those opponents are, each of them have met with misfortune recently, as Diaz and Katsidis were both beaten, and in Pacquiao’s case, he was awarded a decision over Juan Manuel Marquez in a fight that few people in the U.S. feel that Pacquiao won. The fact that all of the said fighters have had recent problems in the ring, it makes them the ideal opponent for Hatton, who probably shouldn’t be thrown in with fighters at the peak of their form because there might too much of a danger that he would be beaten.
The most important thing, however, is to keep Hatton winning, while trying to rebuild the image of him being the wrecking machine that he was three years ago. It’s unclear whether the public will buy into this propaganda ploy, especially if Hatton uses smaller fighters than him to try and recapture his glory. Most knowledgeable boxing fans and experts would like not be too impressed with seeing Hatton pummel a much smaller Pacquiao, who fights two divisions below him in weight, nor would they likely be too swayed by seeing him thrash Diaz and Katsidis, both of whom are coming off disappointing losses. Then again, the majority of the unknowing public doesn’t have a clue about any of those fighters, and would no doubt be more than happy to see Hatton fight them, especially if they saw their impressive ring records displayed as well as some of their highlight videos.
Before that, however, Hatton still a likely future bout coming up in the fall against IBF light welterweight champion Paulie Malignaggi, a weak-punching fighter that appears made to order for Hatton. The only problem with Malignaggi, though, is that he looked positively horrible in his last two fights, and it’s doubtful that Hatton will get too much credit for beating the likes of him. Some of the public will be impressed, particularly if he knocks Malignaggi out, but many others probably won’t. Besides, Hatton probably won’t be able to knock Malignaggi out, and may end up having some problems against him and be made to look bad.
If someone like Miguel Cotto, arguably a fighter a class above Hatton in talent, can’t stop Malignaggi, then certainly Hatton won’t be able to do it. Whatever the case, Hatton has his work cut out for him if he wants another shot at Mayweather. Part of the problem, I suppose rests with Mayweather, for if he hadn’t beaten Hatton so easily (stopping him in the 10th round), there wouldn’t be such a big need to rebuild his status as a fighter. Mayweather should have just toyed with him like he did with Oscar De La Hoya, and let him escape the fight with there being some doubts in people’s minds. As it is, Hatton was utterly destroyed and made to look like a crude slugger.