By Terence Dooley
Both The Guardian and The Manchester Evening News have reported that former undisputed light-welterweight champion of the world Ricky ‘The Hitman’ Hatton has turned down a two-fight Mexican finale that would have seen him take on Erik Morales, who recently won a vacant WBC welterweight title comeback fight against the modest Jose Alfaro, and lightweight kingpin Juan Manuel Marquez.
The MEN reported that Hatton met with Robert Diaz last week and that the Golden Boy chief executive gave Hatton the option of bowing out against the two Mexican legends. Hatton, however, has allegedly turned down the offer, fuelling rumours that he is definitely set to announce his retirement some time in the coming weeks.
Indeed, the Morales fight in particular would not have done Hatton any favours as Erik would be fighting beyond his optimum weight class, as well as beyond his physical prime, and there would be little for Hatton to gain in defeating the shell of this once great Mexican warrior. Marquez fights Juan Diaz in a lightweight fight on July the 10th and the Hatton-Morales fight was floated as an ‘undercard attraction’ yet there is nothing attractive about the fight itself, it would be cynical match-up between two faded forces.
Bernard Hopkins and Roy Jones made a perfect argument for the canning of these over-the-hill ‘superfights’ when fighting a twelve round snoozefest in Las Vegas last Saturday night. Hatton, in refusing to become part of HBO and Golden Boy’s anodyne ‘senior tour’, looks to have drawn the line under a professional career that spanned almost 13 years, two weight divisions and a number of title belts.
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