..5 Things To Take Away From Alvarez-Hatton...

Before I continue on, I think it's important that we focus in on some reality here. Anyone bad-mouthing this KID need to remember that he's 20 years old and has been fighting since he's 15. While that gives him a bit of experience, he still has a LONG WAY to go. Judging him now as the fighter he is, with you thinking he should be the fighter you think he should be is stupid. That being said, I think that he needs a bit of work, obviously. Nonetheless, this is what I took away from the fight. 1. "Canelo" Needs Quite A Bit Of Work On His Defense. At this point, he is simply too hittable and a better fighter with a bigger punch could really change the fight with a few punches. While he has a decent chin, even J. M. Cotto did stun him in their bout. This needs to be worked on. He needs to give them angles and avoid the kind of shots that Hatton did manage to land. He also needs to keep his hands up when he comes in. He seems to come in with his chin up in the air. With some of his rushes, he could really get caught with a crisp counter that will hit him when he doesn't expect it, as he's coming in. Recipe for disaster. 2. Matthew Hatton Is A Fiesty, Little Bastard. I read a thread title that went something along the lines of "Canelo was exposed by Hatton." I disagree. I just think that Hatton is a bit better and a lot more of a fighter than people gave him credit for. He gave it everything he had and a bit more. Going 12 hard rounds isn't getting exposed. It means that both men came to fight. Relax, people. 3. Alvarez Is One Of The Fastest Power-Punchers In The Game. He's not just a hard puncher, he's a fast power-puncher. He's not blistering fast, but for the thudding shots that he lands, he has quite a bit of speed. His hooks have some smoke on them. Even Roy Jones seemed to appreciate the impressive nature of his left hooks. 4. Alvarez' Following Is Only Going To Get Better. That 10,000 sounded like twice as many. That was very impressive. Great atmosphere for a fighter. It wasn't even the fight, it was the FIGHTER. Can you imagine the sound if he gets in there with someone that's a bigger name and has a better chance of winning? Incredible. Regardless of how far this kid goes, it'll be good for boxing while it lasts. 5. Alvarez Needs To Watch His Temper. If Hatton wasn't the type of guy that wanted to give it his all for a championship, Alvarez might have tasted defeat. It would have been looked at as a fluke and I'm sure he would have won any potential rematch. However, that's something that needs to be stymied. He hit after the break. He angrily retaliated from the low blow. He needs to keep the patience that he had for most of the fight. He also seemed to get a bit frustrated when Hatton would use some movement and back away from the action. He needs to keep himself composed. Nonetheless, a fun fight and I was actually pleased with both fights, to be honest. Truthfully, I hope to see both Hatton and Alvarez again. Good fight. Fun times. Any thoughts would be cool.

Comments (12)

Great thread Canelo looked good in a lot of ways, as mentioned. And Hatton certainly displayed heart and courage, as well as decent technique in places. Cotto-Canelo is a fight I would like to see. Cotto hits hard so we'd see if Canelo can take a punch because he's there to be hit

15y ago

hhs661

Great read TS.. I also think Alvarez can work on the type of punches he throws in the early-mid rounds. He gets overly happy with throwing power-punches and it slows him down as the fight goes on. His defense is one thing. At times you would see him slipping punches but that wasn't done on a consistent basis. Just goes to show you that he has the tools to do it, just needs the composure and patience to do it more often. Hatton is a gamer. He was the smaller fighter with no advantages(outside of experience) to his advantage. I think he could be a great gate-keeper at WW if other fighters are willing to go in the ring with him. I loved how he used the double jab in the first couple of rounds but went away from that as the fight progressed.

15y ago

jucava

I can agree on most of your points but this is what I really took from this fight. He wont get much better. He showed zero improvement from the Cotto fight. He better catch who he can catch while his chin is in tact. I think he gets spoon fed softies til they think its a good time to call a fight with Chavez Jr a "superfight". I cant buy in to him from tonights peformance. He couldnt guard himself in a pillow fight. I dont give Berto a pass so he's now a belt hold and his pass is revoked. He thinks he's a bully but that tough stuff is gonna get him severely beaten soon. If Hattons corner was worth a damn it could have been tonight. wtf, he wont get much better??? the guy is only 20......

15y ago

chiguy91

great thread, i pretty much agree with everything. he's only 20, needs to work on his defense and stamina. time will tell though, to see how far he can actually go. good fight for him though, hopefully him and his camp use this fight to work on things..

15y ago

Pullcounter7451

pros for the ginger... 1) the ginger has a big following 2) the ginger has good power, but not great power 3) the ginger puts together good combinations 4) the ginger isn't getting rushed 5) the ginger has a hot g/f 5 cons for the ginger 1) poor defense 2) slow handspeed 3) plodding feet 4) bad temperment 5) too much hype

15y ago

S_H_A_R_K_B_O_Y

He has a Mexican defense. It comes with the territory.

15y ago

Aracibo04

On mathew hatton you forgot to add fiesty dirty ass fighter. and bad actor

15y ago

Weebler_I

5. Alvarez Needs To Watch His Temper. If Hatton wasn't the type of guy that wanted to give it his all for a championship, Alvarez might have tasted defeat. It would have been looked at as a fluke and I'm sure he would have won any potential rematch. However, that's something that needs to be stymied. He hit after the break. He angrily retaliated from the low blow. He needs to keep the patience that he had for most of the fight. He also seemed to get a bit frustrated when Hatton would use some movement and back away from the action. He needs to keep himself composed. Nonetheless, a fun fight and I was actually pleased with both fights, to be honest. Truthfully, I hope to see both Hatton and Alvarez again. Good fight. Fun times. Any thoughts would be cool. I think he was getting frustrated, he was expected to KO Hatton and couldn't quite finish the job. I've never seen Alvarez lose his temper in previous fights. You're right though, if MattHatt took a leaf out of Dirrell's book he'd have walked out as world champion tonight, especially after Canelo hit him after a break the second time. That's no way to win really though. For Canelo's part, well he needs to tighten up his defence and also needs good management, but he's a huge prospect with (seemingly) a massive fanbase.

15y ago

Las_Vegas

He needs alot of work on his defense, and he doesn't have the killer instinct his famous Mexican counter parts once had. His punches most of the time are very smooth and crisp. He has alot of potential for sure. As for Hatton, I couldn't help but laugh when he got hit by Alvarez putting his hands up saying "WTF" and then going down acting like it was a delayed reaction.

15y ago

Noy

I agree on your last point. He needs to keep cool. Comes with being young though. Canelo also has good, unorthodox combos.

15y ago

S_H_A_R_K_B_O_Y

Best post about the fight so far. You hit the nail on the head with every point. I'd green you if the sore Brits/Kellerman hating Pacquiao stans didn't vPlaza hidden red karma me. I can see Alvarez getting a bit bigger, giving him the power to KO some of the best. He just needs more time to develop. People are under rating M. Hatton's chin. They must've forgotten (word to RJJ) that he is built from the same tough leather as his brother. Had he been damaged goods, he would have been quick work, but he's not. He's still a live dog with one hell of a chin.

15y ago

Bierstadt

Very good points, thanks for taking the time to write them out. I'll add that he needs to work on his stamina and economy of punches. Some of those flurries slowed him down for the rest of the round. While his output tonight would have many a fighter gasping by the end, he is very young right now and Matthew Hatton looked in better shape at the end after that beating than Canelo.

15y ago