Ricky Hatton passed away earlier this month and will be remembered as one of the most popular fighters ever produced by this country
Ricky Hatton insisted he would rather be remembered as a man of the people than the best-ever during his poignant final interview.
Former boxing world champion Hatton was found dead in his home aged 46 earlier this month. His funeral will take place in Manchester next Friday following a memorial procession through the streets of the city he loved.
Hatton grew up on a council estate and only took up boxing as a method of dealing with school bullies, but rose to become one of the best fighters this country has seen. But despite winning world titles in two weight divisions, it was the crown of “most-loved” he cherished most.
“I didn’t want to be the best we’ve ever had but I always dreamt of being up there in the same bracket,” Hatton told First Round TV in an interview filmed just days before his death. I didn’t want to be No.1 but as long as they mention Ricky Hatton in amongst my heroes… I’ll never wake up from that.
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“I do a lot of Sportsman’s Dinners with Frank Bruno and I feel very proud when people say ‘our Frank’ and ‘our Ricky’. I am not saying we were the best but we were probably the two most loved. I pinch myself every time I’m with Frank, he was all of our heroes. I was a man of the people, a jack-the-lad, the kid-next-door who couldn’t give two s***s and said it the way it is.
“The best thing that came out of retirement with me was the love I got from the fans and the love I have from the fans still. People remember me as a hell of a fighter but also as one of the boys.”
Hatton, who was due to make a comeback in Dubai on December 2, became world champion when he defeated Kostya Tszyu in 2005. He went on to fight Floyd Mayweather two years later backed by tens of thousands of British fans, losing by stoppage in the 10th round.
But Hatton insists he wouldn’t swap places with the man considered one of the greatest to have laced up a pair of gloves. “Life changed the minute I beat Kostya Tszyu, and life changed for my kids and my family, but I don’t think I changed much,” he added.
“Even today, I’m sat in my gym and the council estate where I was born is 10 minutes away and I live five minutes down the road. I haven’t moved out of a 10-mile radius. I still go down my local 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 late newcomers, always the same mates. I still go to the same place and never turn down a picture. Life changed for me, but I don’t think I changed. You can’t put a price on what the fans views of me are and how they treat me. Youngsters come up for a picture who haven’t seen me live, they’ve only seen me on YouTube.
“The love that the fans have for me is because of the way I am. I would rather be Ricky Hatton than the greatest of all time but everyone think I’m a d***head.”
