Jr. Welterweight king Ricky Hatton makes his long awaited return to the U.S., taking on New York’s Luiz Collazo this Saturday at the TD Banknorth Garden in Boston , MA.
This bout, assumingly scheduled for Collazo’s WBA Welterweight strap, will mark Hatton’s third visit to the U.S. and the first since the Naseem Hamed-Wayne McCullough card which took place in Atlantic City , NJ back in October of ’98.
Eight years have gone by since, and plenty have changed.
Hamed’s illustrious career eventually fizzled away following his Las Vegas loss to Marco Antonio Barrera in 2001. Upon the Prince’s departure, Hatton carried the torch as the next Britain superstar, drawing a simultaneous series of sellout crowd in his hometown of Manchester.
After a series of wins against mostly nondescript opponents, Hatton and former promoter Frank Warren took a big risk in taking on the great Kostya Tszyu past June. In a bout which doubts scattered across even within his own people, Hatton fought the fight of his life in stopping the Russian powerhouse after eleven grueling rounds to lift the IBF Jr. Welterweight Title.
In light of his career defining victory, Hatton followed up with a brutal knockout win over the rugged Carlos Maussa to win the WBA title.
Today, Hatton is among the best fighters in the world, pound for pound.
IDENTITY CRISIS
I never thought the day would come when a short and stocky body puncher like Hatton would adopt the infamous ‘Hitman’ tag, once worn by the legendary Tommy Hearns.
Marked in his stretch of frightening one-punch knockouts against the likes of Pipino Cuevas and Roberto Duran, Hearns was like an assassin with boxing gloves.
Formerly known as ‘The Motor City Cobra’, the transition in moniker was quite appropriate for the Kronk’s prodigy.
The original ‘Hitman’ also carried a mysterious physique to his repertoire, standing freakishly tall at 6’1 for his weight of only 147lbs. Despite his size, Hearns was unbelievably fast, like a hitman parse. An elusive target he was and the trademark right cross could catch you like a sniper from a mile away.
But Hatton, like I said earlier, is short, stocky, and will always be there to be found. He sets a constant pace of pressuring and smothering, and despite his thirty knockouts in forty professional wins, most of them came within an accumulation of body punches to break his opponents down.
THE ENGLISH MASTIFF
How’s this for a change? Drop ‘The Hitman’ moniker, and replace it with say…..’The English Mastiff’!
As a big K-9 enthusiast, I’ve always been fascinated by the big dogs, especially in the herding group of mastiffs and bull terriers. Among my favorites is the English Mastiff, a friendly but courageous and powerful guardian dog.
With the subject in hand, Hatton’s power and his albino-like skin are reminiscent of a rare breed known as the Dogo Argentino, also known as the Argentinian Mastiff.
This powerful breed, which originates from the now-extinct Cordoba Fighting Dog, is a large, muscular, short-coated Mastiff, much like the Cane Corsos or Presa Canarios. But unlike the other mastiffs which might vary in color, the Dogo only comes in white, making it a unique kind among the giant breeds.
Originally bred for hunting and fighting purposes, this rare breed proves to be one of the strongest dogs, not in a pound-for-pound or breed-for-breed sense, but beyond all breeding groups.
Perhaps, it’s a more suitable name for someone like Carlos Baldomir who actually hails from Argentina, but its white coated-hair and overall physique suits best for the pale Mancunian.
Wait, that’s it! The Mancunian Mastiff!
With a soft spoken British accent and a killer instinct reminiscent of a young Roberto Duran, ‘The Hitman’, if you still want to call him, is now a star attraction in British boxing.
And unlike fellow compatriot Naseem Hamed, who many have detracted throughout his career, Hatton strongly remains a fan-favorite.
Call him the Beckhem of boxing if you will.
After a long and successful run in his hometown of Manchester, England, ‘The Hitman’, now guns for stardom in America , starting with Boston where he challenges for his third world title.
On paper, his opponent Collazo presents a name and most importantly, a world title. Initially chosen as a mere stepping stone, the Brooklyn native will enter the ring as a solid 3-1 underdog.
As a prominent showcase for the Manchester’s body snatcher, Collazo appears to be the perfect ‘opponent’.
Stylistically, it’s an intriguing fight for the fans as Collazo would not only be Hatton’s first fight at 147lbs, but is also a southpaw and arguably the best young fighter Hatton has ever faced.
At age 35, it was obvious that Kostya Tszyu was aging, especially coming off multiple injuries and long periods of inactivity. Against Collazo, Hatton’s fighting someone closer to his age and a world champion who’s nearing or at his physical prime.
But in terms of talent, Hatton obviously holds the superior edge.
On another critical note, Hatton will be making his HBO debut, so the conventional wisdom might allow us to expect another ‘showcase’ in hand.
In retrospect, Collazo is underrated in terms of overall skills and toughness, as displayed in his grueling 12 -round battle against Jose Rivera in his title winning effort of 2005. In addition, Collazo fought and beat Rivera in his own backyard of Worcester, MA, so fighting in front of 4000 plus pro-Hatton crowd in Boston will be nothing new to the slick Brooklynite.
And as the only standing world champion from the Big Apple, Collazo’s stature is there to be lifted or trashed depending on the outcome. Hell of a lot to gain for a young champion fighting for the pride of East coast.
To cap it off, let me just say this. I’m against dog fighting or any form of animal cruelty, but if this was a dog fight, it should be billed as “the Mancunian Mastiff versus the American Pit Bull Terrier!”
Remember where you heard it first.
Just kidding.
FINAL NOTES
I haven’t been too hot with this year’s fight predictions. But I shall continue to prophesize the future of boxing.
In a semi-competitive battle, Hatton’s aggression and body work will earn him his third world title. Collazo leaves the ring battered but unbowed. In July , Baldomir defeats Gatti in a minor upset, setting up a unification showdown between he and Hatton. Meanwhile, Floyd continues to wait for the Oscar-payday, but eventually settles for a Margarito bout. Corrales surprisingly stops Castillo in their third fight, thwarting Bob Arum from staging Cotto-Castillo in November. Cotto also moves up to 147 and fights Cintron who by then should be the IBF champion. Corrales beats Freitas again in a rematch, then moves up to 140 to challenge the winner of DeMarcus Corley-Junior Witter for the WBC title. Danny Green stops Mundine in less than five, earning him another title shot. Mundine then retires from the sport then claims he only did it for fun. In June, Antonio Tarver defeats Bernard Hopkins in a snoozer, then calls out another legend. Iran Barkley initially accepts the challenge, but later decides to stay retired, forcing Tarver to fight someone who’s under the age of thirty-five.