Sad news hearing that Ricky has past, 46 is no age at all.
Rest Easy Champ :(
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Sad news hearing that Ricky has past, 46 is no age at all.
Rest Easy Champ :(
Wow. This was shocking. Wasn't he just preparing to return to the fight game? May he RIP.Quote:
Originally Posted by Saddo
yeah he was. making me wonder if it was a heart related death.Quote:
Originally Posted by ykdadamajaWow. This was shocking. Wasn't he just preparing to return to the fight game? May he RIP.Quote:
Originally Posted by Saddo
Ricky Hatton was an extraordinary human being. Never the most gifted natural boxer but a fighter of exceptional resolve and tenacity.
He fought with a ferocity of intent that stood in stark contrast to the affable effervescent man who on the other side of the ropes was embraced by British Fans for his humour and humility. He boiled himself down for fight weekends and ballooned in weight between, but when he was in training mode, he prepared like a beast. That stellar kind of stamina does not happen by accident. His roadwork seemed to help build his self belief as well as condition his body, and come fight night he fought like he was always destined to carry out his brutal trade at the very highest level on the International stage.
His fight with Kostya Tszyu in 2005 for the IBF and Ring Junior Welterweight championships, a war in which both men gave way more than their all, in a sometimes dirty but always engaging and action packed slug-fest, displayed Hatton's lion sized heart in what must surely be regarded as his finest contest.
I cannot believe that he has left us at 46. I was fortunate enough to meet him after his retirement on the post fighter event circuit, and was astonished not just by the size of his hands, but how softly he shook mine and how genuinely interested he seemed in what was probably my embarrassing fan boy gushing.
His chopping down of Castillo with a left hook shot that would have done a liver surgeon proud was one of a 45 fight unbeaten run in which his body shots had stopped so many, only to end when facing the two ATG of his era in Pacquiao and Mayweather.
Certainly a British ATG and an unforgettable character who did so much for UK boxing on the world stage with an army of manic fans who would travel anywhere to see the legend give his all.
There's only one Ricky Hatton.
RIP Champ.
We are all going to miss you
A very sad day for British Sport. If you ever imagined becoming a Boxer, wouldn’t you want to be someone with a huge following because you were so genuine and down to earth and the kind of Boxer that left nothing in the ring or Training camp?
Sadly, it seems like that wasn’t enough.
Various issues with drink, drugs, family disputes and rumoured financial problems have all played their part I’m sure.
When you look up people’s champion in the dictionary , there’s a video of Ricky Hatton at the weigh in for the Mayweather fight and THOUSANDS of fans singing “walking in a Ricky wonderland”.
The following he had will never be repeated. He had thousands turn up for his earliest professional fights, they didn’t jump on the bandwagon.
And he probably had a drink with most of them!
R.I.P. Ricky, you left your mark on this World.
So sad…
Many on here saw the potential of the man from day one, not me; sure he is good, but Tszyu was on another level!
Humble pie never tasted so good.
Farewell champ, it is not right that such a thread is needed for a person in their mid 40s.
rest peacefully ricky
Never been so shocked at the death of someone I didn't know - though I felt I knew him well. He was one of the lads till the end.
Echoing words from above he wasn't the most talented but an out and out pressure fighter, relentless who was on you from the opening bell and didn't give you a chance to breathe. If he'd fought Mayweather in a phone box there would only have been one winner.
I was lucky enough to get a ticket for the Mayweather fight and will never forget that week in Vegas when the adoring Hatton army took over. The
atmosphere at the weigh in was just incredible. That's what he meant to us.
He had his demons in recent years and I'm hoping when the truth comes out re his death it wasn't those demons that took him as we all hoped he'd overcome then.
Thoughts with his family and friends of which there were many who he he stayed loyal to despite his fame and fortune. He will be missed.
RIP and rest easy champ.
There will only ever be one Ricky Hatton.
Just awful news, very hard to comprehend it. Hit me like one of his body punches.
I was convinced Kostya would be too seasoned for him, but he proved me and everybody else wrong. He turned me into a big fan, and I followed the rest of his career.
The fact it came just a few hours after Crawford's win, the most I've enjoyed boxing in a long time, seemed to make it hit all the harder.
I know a few of you on here would have known him, and he seemed to have time for everybody. A really sad day, condolences to all who knew him.