By Terence Dooley
Ricky Hatton responded to Zab Judah’s withdrawal from a showdown with Matthew Hatton by blasting the spot of boxing. Hatton told the Manchester Evening News that boxing is in danger of dying, with the UFC taking its place in the popular consciousness.
Judah had agreed to fight Matthew on the undercard of Mayweather-Marquez; the contest was originally set for the welterweight limit, Matt’s natural weight, only for Zab to move the goalposts by insisting that the fight be fought at light-welterweight. The turnabout has upset Ricky, who claims that this type of thing is ruining boxing.
“I look at boxing from a different angle now and it is dying a death compared to the fashionable Ultimate Fighting Challenge,” Hatton claimed. “Matthew was taking all the risks. He was prepared to go out to Las Vegas to fight in Zab Judah's backyard. He was fighting against a former undisputed champion - at a level much higher than he'd ever fought. He was taking all the chances and then they say they want to fight at 10st 3lbs.”
”They knew Matthew was 10st 7lbs when they made the fight. There is no way he could drop four pounds,” he continued. “No wonder boxing is dying. Boxing is now full of people who talk the talk, but don't back it up. If you go to UFC you are seeing proper fights.”
Hatton continued his blast: “I’m a fan of UFC because it is all action, proper fighting. They are going the right way about it to get people interested. There is a concern in boxing that UFC is taking its place. People seem to get more value for money. UFC would be right up my street but I think I will stick to boxing. I used to kick box so maybe I would be all right but boxing is brutal enough for me.”
Ricky should stick by boxing, despite its flaws the sport made him a household name here in the UK, Hatton also earned well from his achievements in the sport, his fights with Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao generated huge revenues, and helped prove that boxing is still a big draw, with both Manny and Floyd walking the pre-fight talk to spectacularly KO Hatton in huge fights.
Also, the UFC is a tough sport to crack, there is a lot more grappling and mauling in the UFC, it is not conducive to the boxing style, where distance, clean punching, head movement, and solid defensive work is essential, especially at the top-level.
Still, Matthew is now set to fight Lovemore N’Dou for the IBO title, this is not a bad substitute for the Judah fight, and Matthew will no doubt swallow his disappointment, as he seeks to prove himself against the respected South African.
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