14.12.07 – By Richard Rodriguez: With little options other than to go back down to the light welterweight division and attempt to pick up the pieces after his 10th round stoppage to Floyd Mayweather Jr. last Saturday night, Ricky Hatton expressed interest in facing Mayweather again in a rematch, saying “There’s been talk of a De La Hoya fight but that would have to be catchweight. A rematch (with Mayweather) could be in the offing or fights at light-welterweight. I’ve got to sit down with my team and make my mind up now.”
For obvious reasons, the fight against Oscar De La Hoya would seem to be nothing but a pipe dream at this stage since De La Hoya would likely have little interest in facing Hatton due his loss to Mayweather, even though De La Hoya hasn’t exactly been lighting up the boxing world, having lost three out of his last five fights. De La Hoya probably wouldn’t like the idea of getting Mayweather’s sloppy seconds, because even if he did beat Hatton, he’d likely get much less credit for doing so.
It’s hard to conceive Mayweather having any interest in facing Hatton again either, because of the one-sided nature of the fight nor would the public want to see it, most of which would likely not be too keen on throwing away another $50 for a PPV blow-out. For Hatton to make a rematch with Mayweather feasible, he’s going to have to beat two or three excellent light welterweight opponents, say Junior Witter, Ricardo Torres, and Paulie Malignaggi.
It’s unclear whether Hatton can beat any of them, because most of them are highly skilled fighters and would be a huge problem for Hatton. Malignaggi and especially Witter, would quite possibly out-box Hatton much the same way that Mayweather did. While neither of them have quite the same power as Mayweather, both wouldn’t need it because of their extraordinary boxing skills.
Ricardo Torres would be the easier fight of the three, though if Hatton tries to bum rush him, as Hatton does with most of his opponents, Torres will very likely blast him out in short order. It would be the equivalent of Joe Frazier coming at George Foreman, because Torres has one-punch power, the kind that Hatton has never faced before in his career. All three of these fighters are better than any of the opposition that Hatton has previously faced in his career as a light welterweight, and they would be fighting him, if Hatton decides on mixing it up with any of them, at the weakest point in his career.
To make things worse, Hatton wouldn’t get huge money for fighting any of them. It’s not surprising then that Hatton is interested in fighting a rematch with Mayweather. At least in losing to Floyd, Hatton doesn’t look as bad because Mayweather is considered the best pure pound-4-pound fighter in boxing. Hatton would also be getting another big payday for his work, thus softening the blow of another probable loss.
Against Witter, Malignaggi or Torres, Hatton would have no such excuse, and a loss to either of them would be a crippling blow to his career. I honestly don’t expect Hatton face any of them for the reasons I listed. He knows better than that. He somehow avoided fighting them for his entire career, opting instead to fight aged fighters like Kostya Tszyu, Vince Phillips and Luis Castillo, so I fully expect Hatton to continue on with his avoidance of them.