Matthew Hatton thinks Rhodes has a fair chance of beating Alvarez

By Scott Gilfoid: Matthew Hatton found out the hard way how good Saul Alvarez (36-0-1, 26 KO’s) is when Hatton took a savage beating from the 20-year-old Alvarez last March in a one-sided 12 round beating in Anaheim, California. Instead of viewing it as a case of Hatton facing a better man, Hatton said this in an interview at boxrec.com:

“He [Alvarez] was nine pounds heavier on the fight night.” I’m sorry but Alvarez’s small weight advantage over Hatton wasn’t the reason why he gave him such a pounding. Heck, Alvarez could have weight 10 pounds less than Hatton and I bet he would have spanked him with just the same intensity. Face it, Hatton was too weak for this powerful Mexican warrior.

Here is what Hatton said about Alvarez’s fight against Ryan Rhodes on Saturday night in Mexico: “I do think there is a chance Ryan can pull off a surprise. He is unbeaten at light middleweight and maybe in this fight Ryan will be the bigger man on the fight. Ryan is a very experienced fighter and does posses a lot of power, so I think he has a decent chance come Saturday night.”

I don’t give Rhodes any chance in this fight. He’s too weak, too slow and too immobile to win. The old wheels are slowing down on Rhodes and movement is really the only way he can beat Alvarez. He’d have to run, hit and run some more to maybe get a win. What am I talking about? This is taking place in Mexico, not the UK. Rhodes might be able to spoil his way to a hometown decision in the UK, but in Mexico you got to really bring it to get a win. They don’t hand out cheap wins. You got to earn it by physically beating the other guy, and Rhodes doesn’t have the equipment to get the job done. Sorry, you’re going to lose, Rhodes.

Hatton did have a few nice things to say about Alvarez, saying “He is a very good fighter. He’s a hard puncher and a very good body puncher.” Boy, is Alvarez a good puncher. He was using Hatton’s head a light bag all night long and really working over his midsection with big body shots that had Hatton grimacing in pain.