Thousands of people are expected to fill the streets of Greater Manchester as Ricky Hatton takes his last ride through the city he fought for, bled for and was proud of. The 18-kilometer procession will start at 9:45 a.m. from ul Cheshire Cheese Pub in Hydeone of Hatton’s senior haunts where pints once flowed as freely as his left hook.
The route will pass through places associated with his life and career – the gyms, pubs and roads that shaped ‘Hitman’ from a working-class kid into a world champion who catapulted Manchester into the boxing spotlight. Everything ends at Manchester Cathedralwhere a private memorial service will be held for family and close friends.
Ricky Hatton has never been the glamorous superstar type. It wasn’t made for velvet ropes or dainty tributes. He was Manchester to the core – cheeky, working class and true. And four days before his death at the age of 46, he said that what mattered most to him was to be remembered as “one of the boys.”
The man we knew Hitman was found dead at his home in Manchester on Sunday, September 14. The shock shook British boxing and beyond. He spent decades throwing hooks that shook arenas, and yet he had no desire for more belts or headlines. It was belonging – being loved like Frank Bruno, adored by his hometown and accepted by fans who saw themselves in him.
He added: “I’d rather be Ricky Hatton than the greatest of all time, but for everyone to think I’m a publicity head.” For a player who has amassed 22,000 in the MEN Arena and 30,000 in Las Vegas, that says it all. People remember me as a damn warrior, but also as one of the boys.
Fame never changed a mansion kid
Hatton told Barker that his life remained close to his roots even after the glory. “Life changed for me, my children and my family the moment I beat Kostya Tszyu. But I don’t think I’ve changed much. Even today, the gym I run and the house I have are just 10 minutes from the council estate I grew up on. I haven’t moved beyond a 10-mile radius.”
“Even with all the frosty things I’ve achieved through boxing, I still go to the local venue and play darts on a Monday night and play football for the vets on a Sunday afternoon. My mates now are still the same mates I went to school with, no delayed newbies, always the same mates.”
This stubborn loyalty – to pubs, friends, Manchester City and the same senior streets – was what fans felt. He was a hero who could walk into any pub and not have to buy beer. Kids who have never seen him fight live still stop him to take photos because they’ve seen the clips and got a sense of realism.
Fighting your own shadow, helping others in their shadows
Hatton has made no secret of life after his boxing injury. Losses to Mayweather and Pacquiao left scars and depression set in. But he didn’t want to stay down. He received lend a hand. He then used his pain to lend a hand others.
“I didn’t want to tell my friends or family, I didn’t want to worry them, so I kept it a secret,” he told Barker. “I went to the gym or the pub and I was the life of the party, even more than usual, because I was trying to compensate for what was going on inside me.
“Nobody knew and it was very challenging. I thought I could deal with it on my own, but I couldn’t. The best thing I did was realize that I could beat him, I could do this or that, but I couldn’t solve it on my own and I had to talk to someone and that’s the best thing I did.”
“You feel like you can talk to a stranger better than your family or friends. You don’t go out with boys – and I have good friends – but you don’t feel like that. I had a fight with my mom and dad, I broke up with my wife, and I didn’t want to worry the rest of the family. So you keep it inside, you keep it inside, and it festeres.”
Once he got lend a hand, Hatton used his experience to lend a hand others. “Some of my boxers tell me they paid off their mortgages and thank me. That’s what I mean,” he said. Letters arrived from people who heard his story and found hope. This gave him a purpose: “I’m glad I helped others.”
A warrior who never left us
Hatton didn’t want statues or sainthood. He wanted to be the boy from down the street who made it, but he never looked down on anyone. That’s a rarity in boxing – or anywhere else. And maybe that’s why the news of his death touched us so deeply.
He endured brutal nights, public defeats, private battles, and still found the strength to tell a bullied kid to keep his head down in the days before we left. If that’s not greatness, then what is?
Take it effortless, Ricky. You were one of us and you will always be one of the Boys.
Watch the full interview:
Amy Kaplan has been a boxing fan since she was 10, which means she’s spent most of her life explaining to people that, yes, she actually prefers fight nights to dinner. Now he writes for Boxing News 24 and covers everything from world title fights to prospects eyeing a payday. He combines pointed analysis with sarcasm, calling out boxing politics and cutting through the noise of press releases to bring fans the stories that really matter.
Vasily Lomachenko can win the world title outright, but only if he decides to fight at 130 pounds.
Either way, the 38-year-old is expected to return to action later this year after his contract with Top Rank expired earlier this month.
As a promotional free agent, “Loma” is expected to fight for the first time since May 2024, when he earned an 11th-round victory over George Kambosos Jr.
Lomachenko thus won the IBF lightweight title after previously being a three-division world champion, with his last 10 professional appearances coming at 135 pounds.
While many expect him to return to lightweight, perhaps in pursuit of a showdown with Gervonta Davis, the Ukrainian could potentially be tempted by a chance at 130 pounds.
This, in turn, led to the unification of the WBO and IBF titles, although it is unclear what options the Mexican is considering for his next fight.
However, one of them may be a fight with Lomachenko, and WBO president Gustavo Olivieri will share his thoughts on this matter via social media.
“Lomachenko is back and if he wants to fight at 130 pounds with Navarrete, I’m sure the WBO Executive Committee [will approve their fight].
“In delicate of his professional merits – [two-time] Olympic [gold] medalist, multi-division champion, WBO super champion, future Hall of Famer – I’m sure the acceptance will be unanimous.”
WBO President Gustavo Olivieri reiterated that should Team Loma formally pursue a head-to-head fight against Emanuel “Vaquero” Navarrete, the matter would be seriously considered by the Executive Committee, given Lomachenko’s legacy as a three-division WBO world champion and one of… pic.twitter.com/ZJy3qTcU3P
While a fight with Lomachenko could make sense for both sides, super featherweight contender Charly Suarez will be demanding a mandatory shot against Navarrete if he makes his next fight against Manuel Avila on July 11.
When I was a teenage man growing up in Waterbury, Connecticut, in the 1970s and 1980s, sports were king. It seemed like every kid in the neighborhood played on the basketball or baseball team. Fathers, perhaps disappointed that their dreams had not come true, could actually be harsh with their sons and daughters. As a teenage man in Waterbury, I played sports too, but what I loved…what I really loved…was boxing. The problem, of course, was that my mother wouldn’t let me box at the local boys club. If I wanted to box, I had to watch it on TV.
Which I did constantly every chance I got. I really wanted to see boxing live, but as a child my father wasn’t too keen on me being part of the very adult boxing audience. There was no live boxing in Waterbury either. It just wasn’t there. You would think so. Waterbury was a tough town, but unfortunately there was no way to watch professional fights live and in person. Willie Pep once had about 20,000 people in Waterbury Municipal Stadium, but that was long before I was born. There were a lot of boxing fans in Waterbury, but not a lot of boxing fans.
Fortunately, everything will change soon, because on June 6, professional boxing will finally return to Waterbury, and Mike “The Savage” Kimbel will be the main character of the gala at the legendary Palace Theater. To make things even more compelling, Kimbel is from Waterbury himself, so he’ll be performing for a hometown crowd. Of course, the youngster has a lot to lose, but the local player is confident.
“The intensity is still high,” he tells me when I ask how he’s doing as training comes to an end. Originally, one of the opponents was supposed to face Kimbel, but it didn’t work out that way. “He became just like a ghost,” Kimbel says. Fortunately, a up-to-date opponent will step in, which will be good for the teenage athlete hoping to impress his hometown fans.
“I feel amazing,” Kimbel says of the Waterbury fight. He also admitted that the June 6 card was associated with “a bit of the word ‘I told you so’.” Like many teenage children growing up in hard cities and towns, Kimbel had hard times. Suffice it to say, his mother was not joyful with the direction her son’s life was heading.
“My mom was fed up with it,” Kimbel says. Determined to keep her son straight and narrow, Kimbel’s mother took him to the gym. “It kept me out of trouble,” he says. And then some. Kimbel first made a name for himself in mixed martial arts, becoming a Bellator fighter. Eventually, however, he found himself in the squared circle he had always dreamed of.
“It was supposed to be overtime,” he says of his real-life experience in the ring. Needless to say, he fell in love with the sport. “I have always been a huge boxing fan,” he says. Indeed, Kimbel believes that his time in mixed martial arts has done him good. “It carried over,” he tells me. It certainly seems to be the case. Kimbel’s movements in the ring are characterized by natural fluidity. He has an excellent jab that allows him to unleash a powerful law.
However, Kimbel makes it clear that his boxing endeavors are about more than just glory. “I started it for my son,” he says. He also spends time with younger players through the Police Athletic League. “You can see the change in their eyes,” he says of how children, like he once did, began to become familiar with the sport.
While his upcoming performance in Waterbury is satisfying in its own right, Kimbel still feels he still has a lot of growing to do as a professional boxer. “History is still being written,” he says.
Rico Verhoeven doesn’t need a rematch with Oleksandr Usyk because boxing has already taken away from him what he really deserved in Egypt.
Not heavyweight titles. Not a victory. Not even official recognition on the scorecards.
Verhoeven earned the right to hear the bell ring at the Pyramids after pushing the unified heavyweight champion much harder than almost anyone expected.
That moment was taken from him with a second left.
Usyk clearly didn’t prepare to the best of his ability and looked musclebound as he struggled through long stretches of the competition. However, turning him on for the last few rounds and hoping he had enough left in the tank to stop the tiring Verhoeven was certainly not part of the game plan.
The Ukrainian looked genuinely shocked at how Verhoeven was able to maneuver around the ring in such an unconventional way that he repeatedly prevented Usyk from gaining any rhythm.
As detailed in WBN’s live coverage from Giza, Verhoeven frustrated Usyk from the first round and never allowed the champion to fully take control.
Even when Usyk finally succeeded in the underbelly and started hurting Verhoeven towards the end, the Dutchman still survived, recovered and made the fight awkward enough to keep the fight hanging in the balance.
Verhoeven was seriously injured at the end of the eleventh set, but giving him that one minute to recover was the least he could pay for his fortitude and determination.
Mark Lyson’s decision
Therefore, referee Mark Lyson’s decision will remain a long-debated topic of the event.
Lyson is usually one of the better referees in boxing and is rarely controversial. This time, however, he must seriously consider the decision to stop the fight.
The official time of the eleventh round is 2:59. In fact, I thought it was at least 3:01 because the bell had already rung before Lyson had fully entered the action.
Verhoeven got back to his feet. He was prepared to continue and was a second away from hearing the bell ending the final round.
He fully deserved this opportunity.
Mark Robinson
Instead, the ending immediately reopened familiar accusations that boxing protects its own when outside forces threaten the established order.
As detailed in WBN’s post-fight report, the controversy only intensified as Verhoeven appeared to be ahead on multiple unofficial cards entering the championship rounds.
WBN had Rico Verhoeven leading 97-93 after ten rounds and 105-103 after eleven, even including the knockdown.
However, both the live WBC scorecards read in the arena and the WBA scorecards revealed after the fight in which Verhoeven did not win.
That says a lot.
There is no need for a rematch with Usyk
As for the rematch, there’s really no point.
Usyk would almost certainly have prepared better for the second fight and would likely have stopped Verhoeven in the first half of the fight once he was fully accustomed to the movement and rhythm that surprised him in Egypt.
That intrigue is now over and Usyk has his mandatory duties behind him.
Boxing had a chance to adapt to another combat sports star who went far beyond his comfort zone and exceeded almost all expectations placed on him.
Instead, the sport turned what should have been a remarkable crossover success into another evening dominated by controversy, debates over results and accusations of protectionism surrounding one of boxing’s biggest stars.
Verhoeven may never officially receive the recognition many believe he deserves. But he also doesn’t need a rematch to confirm what happened.
For ten rounds under the pyramids, Rico Verhoeven proved that he was there. This should be enough.
About the author
Phil Jay is the editor-in-chief of World Boxing News (WBN) and a boxing veteran with over 15 years of experience. Read the full biography.
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