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Ricky Hatton knows that Kostya Tszyu is the single most feared fighter on the planet. He’s well aware that the native Russian was unstoppable in the amateurs and went on to clean out the most competitive division in boxing earlier this decade, unifying the three major titles at light welter. Hatton also hasn’t lost sight of the fact that Tszyu did not lose his WBC and WBA title belts in the ring and that the naturalized Australian returned from a near two year layoff to effortlessly shatter Sharmba Mitchell, who had been favored by many to defeat Tszyu.
Many believe that the twenty six year old Hatton must quite reasonably be quaking in his boots, as IBF Champion and his missile-like right hand are set to meet the Englishman in the ring on June 4th. After all, the prevailing logic goes, the Manchester native has never faced anyone who even approaches the skill, power or experience of the thirty five year old Tszyu.
Ask Ricky Hatton though and you’ll hear a far different story.
“Without a doubt, I’ll be going in there as the underdog and rightly so, because of what Kostya’s done and achieved in his career,” said Hatton. “But unless I’ve got it terribly wrong, and I like to think that I’m a knowledgeable fighter on boxing, tactics and strategy, unless there’s something I’m genuinely missing, I don’t see myself losing this fight with Tszyu.”
Most fans and media alike are near unanimous in picking the transplanted Russian to not only defeat the Mancunian but to stop the high energy Hatton within the distance. Generally, Tszyu’s cannon-like right hand is cited as the weapon the longtime WBU titlist won’t be able disarm, but Hatton feels he has the code to nullify it’s effectiveness after having worked with trainers Billy Graham, Bobby Rimmer and Kerry Kayes on doing just that.
“I’ve got an idea what Kostya Tszyu is going to do, he’s going to try and use that big right hand to his advantage, particularly with me coming in at him,” said Hatton. “His best chance is to try and finish me early because I get faster and stronger as a fight progresses. Kostya does have a very, very wide stance and that could be a problem if you get somebody who covers the distance, who covers the canvas quickly like I do. I plan on pushing him back, which he hasn’t experienced very much in his career.
“The only person I can remember trying to push Kostya Tszyu back was Ben Tackie, but he was a slow ponderous type, not really giving much though as to what he was doing and not having the ability, speed or footwork to cover the distance which is what you need against Kostya. If you stand on the outside too long, he’s going to set you up for that right hand. It’s essential that you cover that distance very, very quickly and that’s a strength of mine.”
Strategically, the Hatton camp plan on taking a page from the blueprint written by Vince Phillips in 1997, when the former US Marine ended Tszyu’s first title reign, handing the IBF kingpin his only professional loss.
“Vince Phillips set a ferocious pace when he beat Tszyu and I think Kostya felt that acutely,” stated Hatton flatly. “Kostya hasn’t really done many rounds in the last four years. He did two against Zab Judah, twelve against Ben Tackie, five against Jesse James Leija then was out for almost two years before coming back to do three against Sharmba Mitchell in their rematch.
“The last four years Tszyu hasn’t had many rounds under his belt and I think that the pace of the fight could be a key but obviously I’m going to need a little more than stamina and workrate. I’ve got to show good ability as well, which I know I’ve got. I think the combination of my boxing skills, quickness, strength will be key factors in my winning the fight. ”
Ricky Hatton is fully confident that he’ll be successful in his long awaited world title bid, finally delivering on the promise his fans have long believed the Manchester Whirlwind to hold. Despite the fact that Hatton and Tszyu will square off at 2am local time, so as to be televised live in the US during prime time viewing hours, over 22,000 tickets were purchased within just a few hours, selling out the massive Manchester News Arena in record time.
“I know I’m always mentioning my fans but I’d like to say that I think that they’re the best in the world,” Hatton beamed. “Not only have I been demanding big fights for the last twelve to eighteen months but I know my fans had been very, very frustrated at the big fights falling through, as I’ve been as well. Even so, they’ve still always turned up in droves, even when we’ve haven’t had the kind of opponents that both the fans and I have wanted. They still turned out in the thousands to support me.
“As much as I think fighting Tszyu is the opportunity I deserve, I think that it’s the opportunity the fans deserve as well. I’ve said for some time that I was going to become the best light welterweight in the world and I believed that I could become the best light welterweight in the world. Now I’ve got the chance to do so. And it isn’t just talk for the press or the newspapers, to just sell tickets, to worry Tszyu or for any rubbish like that.
“So I want to say to all my fans that when I say I believe that I’m going to win, it’s for no other reason than that’s how I really feel. My fans know what I’m like and they know I wouldn’t say it just because people expect me to say it. I know there’s mixed views out there with a lot of big Kostya Tszyu fans believing that this fight is a step too far for me but some people genuinely believe that this fight is very similar to the stage when Barry McGuigan beat Eusebio Pedroza at a time when Pedroza was at the top of his game.
“There are many similarities because Kostya is a big superstar in boxing terms, probably one of the best pound for pound fighters in the world. But it’s happened many times in the past where the great superstar champions have been beaten by the up and coming guys. Experience is great but what price can you put on youth. less miles on the clock, freshness and hunger? Obviously, Kostya brings the experience into the ring but I bring a lot of things as well and I genuinely believe I’m going to beat him.”
