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RICKY Hatton credits his girlfriend for helping him get into the shape of his life and insists the days of Ricky `Fatton' are a thing of the past.
The Hitman has gained a reputation for piling on the pounds in between fights, but ahead of his clash with Juan Lazcano later this month, he revealed there was no such bulking up after his defeat to Floyd Mayweather.
The 29-year-old, based in Hyde, has never struggled to get down to fighting weight, but he says living with girlfriend Jennifer Dooley has transformed his eating habits.
"I put on a fair bit of weight," he said. "But I've not put on as much as I have before recent fights.
"I put it down to the fact that when I was living at home on my own, the most used number on my mobile was takeaways because I'm not the best around the kitchen.
"But since my girlfriend moved in she's doing the cooking and the takeaways have been less and less so I've not beefed up as much."
His father and manager, Ray, added: "It's led to the closing down of a load of Chinese and Indian restaurants in Hyde, so for that we apologise."
Carrying extra weight or not, Hatton says he needed no encouragement to get back in the gym after suffering his first defeat last December.
Vengeance
While the light-welterweight champion admits he needed time to come to terms with his defeat to Mayweather, he was more determined than ever to get himself into peak physical condition for his homecoming at the City of Manchester Stadium on May 24.
"I'm not saying I needed a kick up the backside because I don't think I did," he said. "But when you taste defeat you come back with a vengeance.
"After the Mayweather fight I was bitterly upset. I couldn't watch it back because it wasn't a fight I was just happy to be involved in, it was a fight that I genuinely thought I could win and, after six rounds, I felt I was going to win.
"Once I'd got round the fact that I'd been beaten I got back into training with a vengeance and I think that has shown in the condition I'm in so early on."
At 33, the clash could represent Lazcano's final chance of a world title and Hatton is predicting a war when he takes on the Mexican nicknamed the `Hispanic causing Panic'.
"He's been in the top 10 for the last five or six years," Hatton said. "He's as tough as they come. He fought Jose Luis Castillo when he was the number one lightweight and he lost by the narrowest of margins to Vivian Harris. He's very capable.
"He's fought for the world title, he's lost four fights in 49 - it's a fantastic record.
"He's always been fighting for world titles and on the fringes and like so many good fighters, just not quite done it. He will see it as a big chance.
"Styles make fights and we need this style of opponent. There are going to be 55,000 there on the night and the last thing we need is a chess match or someone who is going to run away with it all night.
"It will be a war and that is what fans pay to see."
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Manchester Evening News
The Hitman has gained a reputation for piling on the pounds in between fights, but ahead of his clash with Juan Lazcano later this month, he revealed there was no such bulking up after his defeat to Floyd Mayweather.
The 29-year-old, based in Hyde, has never struggled to get down to fighting weight, but he says living with girlfriend Jennifer Dooley has transformed his eating habits.
"I put on a fair bit of weight," he said. "But I've not put on as much as I have before recent fights.
"I put it down to the fact that when I was living at home on my own, the most used number on my mobile was takeaways because I'm not the best around the kitchen.
"But since my girlfriend moved in she's doing the cooking and the takeaways have been less and less so I've not beefed up as much."
His father and manager, Ray, added: "It's led to the closing down of a load of Chinese and Indian restaurants in Hyde, so for that we apologise."
Carrying extra weight or not, Hatton says he needed no encouragement to get back in the gym after suffering his first defeat last December.
Vengeance
While the light-welterweight champion admits he needed time to come to terms with his defeat to Mayweather, he was more determined than ever to get himself into peak physical condition for his homecoming at the City of Manchester Stadium on May 24.
"I'm not saying I needed a kick up the backside because I don't think I did," he said. "But when you taste defeat you come back with a vengeance.
"After the Mayweather fight I was bitterly upset. I couldn't watch it back because it wasn't a fight I was just happy to be involved in, it was a fight that I genuinely thought I could win and, after six rounds, I felt I was going to win.
"Once I'd got round the fact that I'd been beaten I got back into training with a vengeance and I think that has shown in the condition I'm in so early on."
At 33, the clash could represent Lazcano's final chance of a world title and Hatton is predicting a war when he takes on the Mexican nicknamed the `Hispanic causing Panic'.
"He's been in the top 10 for the last five or six years," Hatton said. "He's as tough as they come. He fought Jose Luis Castillo when he was the number one lightweight and he lost by the narrowest of margins to Vivian Harris. He's very capable.
"He's fought for the world title, he's lost four fights in 49 - it's a fantastic record.
"He's always been fighting for world titles and on the fringes and like so many good fighters, just not quite done it. He will see it as a big chance.
"Styles make fights and we need this style of opponent. There are going to be 55,000 there on the night and the last thing we need is a chess match or someone who is going to run away with it all night.
"It will be a war and that is what fans pay to see."
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Manchester Evening News
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