Ricky Hatton's "legacy"

[Earl Hickey]

Does he have one?

I thought Hatton was unfortunate that he missed that "B" level opponents on his resume.

He mostly went from C+ level to A+, beating the C+ but losing to the A+

I thought he was a solid fighter, but he hurt himself with bad living, and was also matched with awkward opponents for his style, i.e Luis Collazo being a bit of a nightmare for him. It also didn't help that he faced "absoloute prime" versions of Pacquiao and mayweather.

Regardless, he won a lineal title, and IMO had a "respectable" career.

however, the general opinion of him, particularly since the ill-advised Senchenko fight seems to have hit an all time low, with many thinking he was some kind of poser, whom most decent 140lb fighters would easily have taken care of. An example being that many are saying guys like Brandon rios would easily spark a prime Hatton.

What is your opinion of the man, what he did, and what he could have done had he been more dedicated to his craft?

[NoLove]

Yes he does. In his prime days he wasn't fighting top level opposition but he was still an amazing pressure fighter. The way he used to set up body shots was lethal.

[baya]

hatton was special at 140. quickest feet on a brit that i've ever seen.

[Earl Hickey]

looking at some of his old fights, he had good head movement too, where did that go?

[Capaedia]

Hatton will be remembered, and remembered favourably. That's all that I can really say for certain right now.

Except that he would have beat some manners into Rios. That thread is unbelievable.

Originally Posted by Earl Hickey

looking at some of his old fights, he had good head movement too, where did that go?

His life outside the ring probably led to him burning out faster than he should have. That probably has something to do with it.

[Sugarj]

Leading upto and including the Tszyu fight, Hatton was quite something. Terrific pace, pressure, excellent body work and a very solid chin.

His bad living almost certainly played a part in his downfall. The jump to welterweight was never a clever move.....the Collozo fight demonstrated that he was never a true welterweight, so it was a bad decision to face Mayweather at that weight after division hopping once again.

Punch resistance and it's decline can seem to correlate with fluctuating weights. After the jump up to welterweight and the Collozo battle he never seemed to absorb a blow quite as well as he did before (and including ) the Tszyu fight. Knocked out by Mayweather, very shaky against Lascano and obviously sparked by Pacquiao! There are plenty of other world class fighters whose chin seemed to deteriorate after dropping to a division below a weight class they recently fought at; Sugar Ray Leonard and Roy Jones Jnr jump to mind.

But prime for prime, I think Hatton would have given anyone in recent times a tough match at light welterweight.

[D-MiZe]

Hatton's legacy is going to be full of ifs and buts.

He spent far too long defending that WBU trinket and if he had stepped up early, he'd have been looked upon a lot more favourably. He neglected a lot of his subtle tactics/moves when he finally reached the big time and his life outside of the ring was detrimental to his career.

Hatton won't be rated as well as he should be, whenever he's talked about in a fantasy sense they mention his weak chin. Hatton had a solid chin, he'd be in there for 12 rounds against the best. They're oblivious to his footwork and feints , bodywork and pressure.

No point trying to have a sensible conversation on here about Hatton though.

[Earl Hickey]

Originally Posted by D-MiZe

Hatton's legacy is going to be full of ifs and buts.

He spent far too long defending that WBU trinket and if he had stepped up early, he'd have been looked upon a lot more favourably. He neglected a lot of his subtle tactics/moves when he finally reached the big time and his life outside of the ring was detrimental to his career.

Hatton won't be rated as well as he should be, whenever he's talked about in a fantasy sense they mention his weak chin. Hatton had a solid chin, he'd be in there for 12 rounds against the best. They're oblivious to his footwork and feints , bodywork and pressure.

No point trying to have a sensible conversation on here about Hatton though.

just for the sake of a chin-wag.

How do you think Hattons career could potentially have gone, if better managed and he dedicated himself the way a fighter should?

I know it's a what if, but what the heck we have the time.

[#1Assassin]

i dont think he has a legacy tbh. not enough big wins and his defeats even though they were against two of the best fighters of his time were crushing. both mayweather and pacquiao showed hatton didnt belong in the same ring as them. collazo arguably beat him too.

and what are his best wins? a badly faded tszyu, shot JLC, malignaggi, aforementioned decision over collazo, maussa and ben tackie.. not the stuff of legends.

he was a decent fighter at world level and a world champion. but he was never truly the best in his division, even when he held the lineal title there were always atleast 2-3 guys at his own weight that could beat him. when he beat kostya floyd and cotto were both at 140, two truly elite fighters. i dont think hatton was ever truly elite.

never the best at his weight and he didnt belong in a p4p discussion even though ppl rated him because of his popularity and undefeated record. if hatton has a legacy its that of a ppls champion, someone who won the hearts of the ppl. but he doesnt have a legacy based on ability or accomplishments.

[D-MiZe]

He'd probably have exited the sport last year or this year after a good run against the current crop of LWWs. His style meant he was never destined for longevity but his out of the ring antiques shortened it considerably.

He would've lasted longer against Pac and taken more punishment, so maybe that fight would've ruined him anyway. He would've fought the likes of Alexander and Bradley, could see him beating the former - not sure on the latter. He wouldn't have down well at 147 and 140 lacks depth, he'd have the longevity and bigger wins though that would make him looked upon more favourably.

As it is, he's probably still Top 10 ATG Light-Welter.