By Chris Williams: You got to admire Ricky Hatton (45-1, 32 KOs) for his confidence, because with a tough fight coming up on May 2nd at the MGM Grand, in Las Vegas, Nevada, Hatton is already planning on his next moves after the Pacquiao fighting, hoping to fight Juan Manuel Marquez next later in 2009, and then finish up his career against Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2010. It seems as if Hatton is living in denial more than a little, because I can’t see a fight against either Marquez or Mayweather Jr. happening if Hatton can’t even beat Pacquiao.
Sure, maybe he will, but then maybe won’t and what then? Does Hatton still take the fights against Marquez and Mayweather? I suppose Marquez would be all too happy to take a fight against Hatton under any circumstances, but the boxing public – outside of England – probably won’t be all too thrilled to see Hatton fight a bag named star like Marquez if he can’t get by Pacquiao.
My guess is that Hatton will try to take Marquez and Mayweather Jr. in his next two fight regardless of whether or not he defeats Pacquiao. At this point, he’s probably just padding his wallet on the way out of the sport and losses to Pacquiao and Marquez won’t change his plans any.
If he was concerned about sticking around the sport, he’d step up and try to fight one of the top two fighters in the light welterweight division in Timothy Bradley and Junior Witter instead of the Paulie Malignaggi’ and the Juan Lazcano’s of the division.
I don’t think you’ll get Hatton anywhere close to those good fighters because in losing to them, neither or which are nearly as popular as Hatton, Marquez or Mayweather Jr., Hatton would be brought down to earth and made to look all too mortal.
Losing to fighters like Mayweather Jr., Pacquiao and Marquez are one thing, but getting beaten by less well known stars would be a fatal blow to Hatton. Chances are, Hatton would have lost to them a long time ago if he had given them the chance by fighting them. He hasn’t, instead going after faded stars like Lazcano and Jose Luis Castillo and the weak punching Malignaggi rather than risking fate by stepping in the ring with them.
My hope is that Hatton doesn’t go ahead with the Marquez and Mayweather Jr. bouts if he loses badly to Pacquiao. I can’t see this as being a good thing for boxing with a fighter being beaten repeatedly, yet being given chances again and again against the biggest stars of the sport and ones that have proven themselves against the best time after time rather than lesser fighters.
I’d like to see Hatton step back down after he loses to Pacquiao, and take on one of the best light welterweights in the division like Bradley or Lamont Peterson. I also wouldn’t mind seeing him fight Nate Campbell or Junior Witter.
Those would be excellent fights and ones where Hatton would be seen as showing some courage by fighting the best rather than hand-picked fighters the way he’s been fighting the past few years.
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