"Hatton has no chance", says British boxing fan

Painful lesson ahead as Hatton faces rough weather against Mayweather, by Richard Wilson If Ricky Hatton thinks he’s going to turn up in Las Vegas on December 8 in the best shape of his life and beat Floyd Mayweather, at least one British boxing fan reckons he’d better think again. 'Mayweather’s reflexes and all-round defence will be too fast for Ricky to land enough clean shots to stop him. As Hatton slows, Mayweather will pick him off with quality punches' As a proud British boxing fan of many years, I’d love to see Ricky Hatton beat Floyd Mayweather. But the reality is that it’s not going to happen. The one advantage the Manchester slugger has is that he is naturally bigger. Mayweather won the first of his five world titles at super-featherweight, Hatton his first world title at super-lightweight. This fight is at welterweight and Hatton’s only previous outing in this weight division was against Luis Collazo, who gave him one of his toughest fights. Hatton got the nod, but some observers felt Collazo did enough to win. Mayweather, on the other hand, stepped up to super-welter to defeat the legendary Oscar de la Hoya earlier this year, and looked to carry the extra weight comfortably. Both men should be at their peak, Hatton at 28 and Mayweather 30, with neither having been in many wars. So why does the Englishman have no no chance? Hatton isn’t generally considered a one-punch KO artist at this level. When he stops his opponents, he usually takes them out with a high volume of punches - and there’s the problem. Mayweather at his peak deserves to be ranked alongside some of boxing’s greats. A slick, stylish boxer, he has lightning hand speed and reflexes to match, which he uses to slip the majority of punches thrown his way. How is Hatton going to land sufficient punches to stop the classiest boxer of his generation? Mayweather destroyed brawler/warrior Arturo Gatti in six rounds, and skilled boxer Shamba Mitchell in the same distance. In his career to date, Mayweather has shown he has the tools to defeat whoever stands in front of him - boxer, puncher or both. A common foe for Hatton and Mayweather has been Jose Luis Castillo. Mayweather twice comfortably defeated the Mexican over 12 rounds at lightweight. By the time Hatton got in the ring with him, Castillo’s best days were behind him as many ring wars began to take their toll. So that indicator can probably be ignored. Having said that, Hatton’s destruction of Castillo was highly impressive! Hatton’s only chance to win this fight is to swarm Mayweather from the first bell and take the American right out of his 'slick boxer' comfort zone. Actually make 'Pretty Boy' doubt his game plan and draw him into an ugly brawl. For Hatton to sustain this for 12 rounds and take a decision, well, it would take more than I believe he has in the tank. That only leaves landing sufficient quality punches to stop his illustrious opponent - and as I’ve already said earlier, that is the problem for Hatton. Mayweather’s reflexes and all-round defence will be too fast for Ricky to land enough clean shots to stop him. As Hatton slows, Mayweather will pick him off with quality punches. Mayweather won’t overpower Hatton, but there is a chance he will overwhelm him in the later rounds and force a stoppage. A unanimous decision for the American is the best bet, but don’t discount him stopping Hatton in the championship rounds. Either way, there will be only one winner. Ricky Hatton will be far from disgraced in losing this fight. He is proving his courage in taking on the best, and he will go home with his head held high. Unfortunately he will also be contemplating his future as a boxer. - Source