Hatton vs Mayweather

Well, here we are just over a day away from what promises to be the fight of the year.

There is something for everyone in this fight- the contrast of styles is as great as the contrast in character between the fighters.

Hatton, the humble, likeable and approachable hard-man, Mayweather the flash, crude boxer with a mouth as fast as his fists.

Between them they have beaten 81 professional fighters including Tzsyu, De La Hoya, Collazo, Castillo, Baldomir amongst other greats.

Neither has been beaten as a pro. Ever.

The smart money is on Mayweather. With belts at 5 weights and silky skillsm he is one of the all time greats, even if he is a jerk.

However, the smart money was on Tszyu when Hatton made him quit on his stool at the end of the 11th, and when one punch breaks 4 of his oponents ribs as happened in his last outing, no one would blame you for a putting cash on the underdog.

mayweather's win against De La Hoya was not convincing, and with younger legs, Oscar would have got a clear decision. Hatton will be able to apply 10 times the pressure De La Hoya brought to the ring, and for a defensive fighter, defending 12 rounds of Hatton onslaughts is a big ask.

Hatton's biggest worry is cuts. He is prone to damage, and Mayweather is crafty enough to exploit this. No one wants a cuts-stoppage, except mayweather, who will take great pleasure in the payday and victory however it comes.

My head says Mayweather, but my heart says Hatton. either way, we are in for a real treat.

Opinions? Predictions?

"My head says Mayweather, but my heart says Hatton."

Seems to some it up for me Cord.

Seeing Hatton in some of the build up interviews he looks like hes seriously ready for this, and its hard not to fall for his fairytale win and be blinded to the class that Mayweather obviously has.

But I'll go with my heart and say Hatton stops him

Can't wait. Should be a great fight. I am afraid that I will have to go with Mayweather on this, although I would not be heartbroken if Hatton were to win.

I don't expect Mayweather to breeze through Hatton, however. This will be a true test, as Hatton brings awesome speed and power as well.

If anyone can beat Mayweather in modern boxing, it would be Ricky Hatton.

Mayweather doesn't like being put under incessant pressure ( see Mayweather vs Jose Luis Castillo... Oscar De La Hoya). Hatton has superb stamina, and can fight every second of every round. Castillo and De La Hoya couldn't.

Another factor as well is that after all these years of graft Mayweather is finally regonized as a legitimate sports star, even outside of boxing. He has been on Strictly Come Dancing and has been living the good life. He said it himself in the build up, he's a record breaker and has achieved an incredible amount...

...but does he still have that hunger you need for a fight like this? Sure he is motivated for the fight, but I just think Hatton wants it that little bit more. I think that could be the difference. They are both in for rough spots in the fight. We'll see who handles it best.

Hatton to win.

Hatton all the way! Will be a late stoppage I think. First rounds going to Mayweather...fight going to Hatton. Just pray for no cuts!

Wow! To be honest, I am not overly suprised by the result, but i am suprised by how Mayweather went about it.

In the run up to the fight, the general wisdom was considered to be that Mayweather was a great boxer, but not much of a 'fighter', and had little experience of, or taste for, a toe to toe physical encounter. The same wisdom gave Hatton a clear advantage if he were able to close in and fight in the clinch, as it was out of Floyd's 'comfort zone'.

The first 5 rounds were pretty even, with HBO commentators having Hatton ahead on points by virtue of work rate and aggression. Hatton had caught Floyd off guard in the first round, nearly dropping him with a stiff jab- it was to be Hattons best round of the fight.
After the nip and tuck of the first half of the fight, a few things were clear: 1. Mayweather was as strong as Hatton. 2. His mastery of clinch defense and in fighting was as good as his range-work, and he was happy to play rough. 3. Hatton was feeling the pressure of the occasion, and was feeling frustrated, mainly by the awful refereeing.

From round 7, mayweather seemed to find a second gear (easy seeing as how his clever defence was energy sparing), and he started firing some evil combos as Hatton closed distance. These clearly hurt Hatton, and the ref was close to stopping the fight at one point, of course, hatton just bulldozed on and recovered by instinct alone, but the writing was on the wall from there on, and in the 10th, mayweather deprived Hatton of a brave points defeat with a superb counter hook that sent Hatton to the deck for only the second time in his career. Plucky to the last, Hatton beat the count, but a shot to his temple in the next combo sent him reeling and that was that.

It was only in the aftermath, with the jive talking and hype out of the equation that the level of respect Floyd has for Hatton became clear- he cried with relief/joy at winning, and paid a glowing tribute to Hatton's skill and tenacity. it was clear by the amount of work he had done on his clinch game that he had taken Hatton very seriously all along, and Ricky's sprited performance showed he was right to do so.

It is interesting to realise that whilst the run up portrayed this fight as important for Hattons legacy, it was also obviously important to Mayweather- having underperformed in all his recent fights, and been criticised for losing his taste for the game, he was clearly intent on bringing his best to the ring, and beating his oponent, not just winning the fight.
Again, that he considered Hatton of a calibre to prove these attributes to the world is a great compliment and validation of Ricky's ability.

Two things that took the shine off a hard fought and honest boxing match: 1. British fans booing the American national anthem. Disgraceful. I apologise for them. If you want to be charitable, they could have been booing the singers rendition of it, which would make it understandable, if not forgiveable 2. The referee was awful, and should never be allowed to control any fight of any importance ever again.

Outside of that, the best man won, the loser retained his dignity and earned deserved respect, we got an exciting fight, and they got more money than a small developing country will ever see

From here, Hatton can either go back to junior welterweight and continue to defend his belts in a division where his strength and power are to be feared, or he can stay at Welterweight for a mega-fight with De la Hoya. Whilst that will bring another big payday, and the combined styles will be a war, I dont see any gain outside of financial in the fight. If he won, critics would say that it was due to Oscar's age, and if he lost, then he would damage his record for nothing.
Hopefully, he will be content with securing his light-welter legacy in his own right, not go chasing glory from anothers crown.

Well I'm sad for Hatton, but genuinely impressed by Mayweather. I did not see a knockout coming! Having not seen the match(I'm not staying up that late/early lol) I feel unqualified to comment, but I will say that whatever the result of this fight, Hatton would still have a great career ahead of him.

Great fight I never would have thought it would have ended the way it did. Ricky is a little tank he just keep coming and rough housing. This is a tribute to Mayweather's skill I don't like what comes out of his mouth, but his skill can't be denided. Hatton is not a walk through he is as tough a boxer you can get, Mayweather's just too good. My boy Ricky couldn't hit him after the 1st round strong punch. He had a 17% punch status Mayweather had 47%, numbers don't lie.

Ricky still exciting to watch, theres other fights for him out there. I don't think he should fight Oscar, Delahoya is just as good a boxers as FW, and his left hook is more powerful, Oscar is a more powerful boxer imo. That wouldn't be a good fight for Hatton. There is other big fights out there.

Got to say, I thought MW's tribute to Ricky after the fight was pretty decent.

Finally got round to watching the fight. Was a cracker and an absolute master class in clinch boxing. Cord has summed it all up but the ref was a total disgrace, but I don't think the outcome would have been too far different with or without his idiocy. To me this was a great example of what the sport should be about, you had the run to the fight which was light hearted micky taking and playing up to the crowds, a war of a fight where both fighters were there to compete, a clear winner and at the end of it all respect all round. I don't think the game could be played any better than that...just a shame about the ref!