Sharkie's Machine: Floyd Mayweather Jr vs Ricky Hatton Prefight Thoughts


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Sharkie's Machine: Floyd Mayweather Jr vs Ricky Hatton Prefight Thoughts

By Frank Gonzalez Jr., Exclusive to Doghouse Boxing (Dec 6, 2007) Doghouse Boxing

This Saturday (December 8th), Ricky Hatton (43-0, 31 KO's) and Floyd Mayweather Jr. (38-0, 24 KO's) will finally meet in the ring to answer the question of who is the better fighter. Not everything that happens in boxing makes history but some things do leave a dent. At the least, Mayweather vs. Hatton will take a $60 dent out of our wallets if we want to watch it on TV.

This match up has the potential to be a fight of the year candidate. Maybe a fight of an age candidate. We'll all

soon find out how this fight will stack up against some of the all time greats bouts of days gone by. I can tell that the HBO promotion of this fight has raised an interest in boxing I haven't seen since Mike Tyson burst onto the scene in the mid 1980s. Actually, there was a pretty big buzz leading up to Mayweather's last fight, against Oscar De La Hoya, which turned out to be a stinker. Let's hope this fight is more fulfilling. The buzz is in the air big time for this one.

Consider that both are unbeaten, have been Champions for a long time and have both been involved in unforgettable fights, like Hatton's destruction of Kostya Tszyu in 2005 or back in 2001, when Floyd Mayweather Jr. demolished an "in his prime" Diego Corrales (One of the most exciting fighters in the sport, recently killed in a motorcycle accident, may he rest in peace).

Floyd's a master technical boxer with speedy hands, impressive defensive skills and sneaky power in spite of his hand problems. He reminds me of Roy Jones Jr. in many ways except for one, Mayweather fights better quality opponents than Jones did. That Floyd is fighting Hatton is testament to that.

Hatton fights like a Tasmanian devil let loose in a boxing ring. He can be wild at times but always intelligently. He comes to fight, not to dance around and score points. He can go full throttle for 12 rounds, chase you down and let his hands go with little regard for what's coming back. That strategy will certainly be part of what he brings Saturday night. I thought Luis Collazo and his finely tuned boxing skills was the only fight that really gave Hatton problems. Floyd Mayweather Jr. is arguably the best "boxer" in the sport. This will be Ricky Hatton's greatest challenge.

The only fighter I ever saw go after Floyd continuously was Jose Luis Castillo, who had a chin of stone and was able to win more rounds over Floyd than anyone I've seen since. I thought he won their first fight but Floyd left no doubt who won in the rematch. Whatever magic Castillo possessed in the first fight was derailed by Floyd's speed and accuracy in the rematch.

In June of 2005, Ricky "The Hitman" Hatton fought one of the last unified Champions in boxing, Kostya Tszyu. Hatton put so much pressure on him that Tszyu retired after eleven brutal rounds and never fought a prizefight again. It was sad to see Tszyu lose so badly and unimaginable that he would quit on his stool with only one round left. Pain will do that to a man. I thought Hatton fought a pretty dirty fight, hitting and holding too often and Tszyu should have been better prepared for the Soccer style stamina and athleticism of Ricky Hatton. He wasn't.

In that same month, "Pretty Boy" Floyd Mayweather Jr. fought Arturo Gatti, pummeling him so badly that Gatti didn't make it past six rounds, losing by TKO. In the first round of that fight, Floyd was pushing Gatti's head down and punching it when the ref yelled, "Stop punching!" At that moment, Gatti turned to the ref and Mayweather sucker punched him with an uppercut clean on the chin that sent Gatti into the ropes and then onto the canvas. Instead of penalizing Floyd, the ref proceeded to count. Gatti got up at five and was clearly hurt, in a fog and at a serious disadvantage. The fight was a complete mismatch until Gatti's corner mercifully threw in the towel after six.

I remember wishing, "If only Mayweather would fight Hatton! What a great fight that would be." I doubted it would ever happen since both guys were so cautiously managed.

If it were December 2005, I'd give the edge to Hatton because he just came off a great win over Kostya Tszyu, a great fighter even in the twilight of his career, as opposed to Mayweather, who just beat a 'way past his prime,' Arturo Gatti, who although wildly popular with the fans, was never an "elite boxer" as is Floyd Mayweather Jr. Gatti's fights were often great because of good match making and not because Gatti possessed any super boxing skills outside of his big heart, good natured demeanor and that he gave all he had in the ring, win or lose.

It's my opinion that there's a spiritual element involved in all things in life. Boxing is no exception. All top level fighters have something special. In some cases, it's limited to what they can do in the ring. Some fighters have engaging personalities, are humble, inspiring people that you can identify with on some level, they are gracious, good natured and easy to root for.

Some fighters speak in the third person and demand respect while showing none. Floyd is all about material possessions, money, bling and an arrogance that betrays a lack of peace within. Hatton is friendly, funny, a great fighter and people like him. He is humble enough to make fun of himself (Ricky Fatton). Floyd likes to show off his cars, his jewelry and his flashy lifestyle. The people around Floyd look like guys getting paid well. The guys around Hatton really like him because he's a regular guy who isn't pretentious.

In a way, this fight is a battle between two sides of a cultural divide. Humility vs. Arrogance. Blue Moon vs. Gangster Rap. The Me Generation vs. the We Generation. This is one of those fights. This is not just a boxing match; it is a contest between what exists at the core of both fighters, mentally, emotionally, spiritually and obviously physically. Floyd Mayweather Jr. is the boxer. Ricky Hatton is the brawler. Floyd has speed and great defensive elusiveness. Hatton has incredible stamina and will.

The way I see it, Floyd has to catch Hatton with telling shots to the body that break him down and diminish his stamina. If he can land clean shots to the face often, he will cause Hatton to bleed so bad the ref may stop it.

For Hatton, he needs to pressure Floyd in a manner similar to how he did against Tszyu. He better be able to take Floyd's shots without faltering and land his own and keep Floyd going backwards.

Somebody's O has to go.

Speaking to the Daily Press in Las Vegas, former HW Champion, Mike Tyson said, "I just want the best man to win, and that means Ricky Hatton. He's a great kid. I don't like Floyd Mayweather."

Not many do.

I like Ricky Hatton to win, possibly by TKO late in the fight.

I can't wait for Saturday!

Comments can be emailed to dshark87@hotmail.com.