Ricky Hatton talks about depression

[gilgamesh]

A lot of guys were wrong for Hatton, I'll never believe Witter was one of them. What's Witter's best win? Vivian Harris I guess? Remember when Hatton beat up and knocked out the guy that beat Harris....yeah

Harris also lost to Ray Oliveira, another Hatton victim.

I didn't even know about that one. That's a pretty bad loss for Vivian Harris especially at the time it must've went down. Oliveira was never anything more than a fringe contender at best, at one time Vivian Harris was thought of as a serious top contender...what a brief ride that was.

[mickey1975]

I only met Ricky a month or so ago and he looked like he wanted to be anything but in the public eye. He looked sick to death of it. These stories are old news, not sure why they've been brought up again. There's a couple of people around Ricky I suppose it would benefit to keep him grafting..... Looked like he'd had enough to me. And all the crowd knew as well.

[whiskey]

I didn't even know about that one. That's a pretty bad loss for Vivian Harris especially at the time it must've went down. Oliveira was never anything more than a fringe contender at best, at one time Vivian Harris was thought of as a serious top contender...what a brief ride that was.

Harris was fringe world class at one point. He beat Urkal a few times and I remember he halted Dioblys Hurtado in two rounds (whom had previously gave Tszyu a good fight a few years earlier.

He had a good left hook, straight right. He was quite upright but did the basics well and had a dig.

But then he just fell apart and became a straw man. He foolishly did like a 10-mile run the day of the Maussa fight as the excuse for losing and then claimed Witter was spotted doing steroids in his changing room or something else after that loss, which Witter could have sued him for. Then he became a professional punch bag.

I think he took too many headshots myself. A bit like Jermain Taylor - his personality seemed irrational and he was getting KO'd by any old punch.

[Boxerbeetle]

I didn't even know about that one. That's a pretty bad loss for Vivian Harris especially at the time it must've went down. Oliveira was never anything more than a fringe contender at best, at one time Vivian Harris was thought of as a serious top contender...what a brief ride that was.

Harris was fringe world class at one point. He beat Urkal a few times and I remember he halted Dioblys Hurtado in two rounds (whom had previously gave Tszyu a good fight a few years earlier.

He had a good left hook, straight right. He was quite upright but did the basics well and had a dig.

But then he just fell apart and became a straw man. He foolishly did like a 10-mile run the day of the Maussa fight as the excuse for losing and then claimed Witter was spotted doing steroids in his changing room or something else after that loss, which Witter could have sued him for. Then he became a professional punch bag.

I think he took too many headshots myself. A bit like Jermain Taylor - his personality seemed irrational and he was getting KO'd by any old punch.

I don't think I'd seen Harris before the Maussa fight, but I'd read a lot about him, he was very highly rated at the time. I distinctly remember being absolutely shocked by how bad he was that night, he was terrible. Not that Maussa was much better.

[Crease]

Fair play to Ricky for admitting that he has the illness. It isn't an easy thing to admit to because there's still a bad stigma with mental health.

And it doesn't matter how much money you have, or how successful you are/were, or if your famous.

Depression can affect anybody and 25% of the population will be diagnosed with the condition.

[whiskey]

Not directed at Ricky, but a general comment -

Boozing is such a publicly accepted past time, but many don't realise the effect that it can have on folk mentally. Fatigue, bad sleep, poor liver health build up over time from continuous drinking until someone permanently feels under the weather to point where the person thinks it's just normal and how they generally feel.

I think when the body is constantly flushing and dealing with what is basically a poison, it can become extremely run down and overloaded. Empty calories, strain on the organs and skin especially. Your system should be regenerating your body, but instead it's not and is dealing with a foreign object inside it.

Men can cope with being young and full of testorone when we are younger, but eventually it catches up. I'm not really talking about partying on a Saturday night, but more the daily habit of a couple with friends, or with a meal - followed by perhaps another one on the sofa afterwards. Over months and years of doing this most evenings... it adds up.

Apart from those with a serious issue with drink (addiction) whom no longer touch it even in moderation, I bet the regular man on the street would struggle to think of the last time they went even a single week with a bottle of beer after work or a glass with a meal.

Poor memory is a quick fire way of recognising if the above description is you. Forgetting passwords, people's names or dates etc. It affects vision and reaction timing too. It might only be subtle, but it's there. That's because alcohol affects very acute parts of the brain.

[TheCobra]

I agree totally Gomez. Alcohol has a cumulative effect and can disrupt many normal brain and body processes. People don't realise how much better they'd be without it, how much clearer the thinking is and how much more you achieve in your life when you give it a miss for a sustained period of time.

Cocaine is the real killer here though for Hatton methinks.

Once you start mixing the two and become normalised to coke/booze benders, well those lows are gona be crushing and potentially knock your mental health off for months. Cocaine has been proven to damage the dopamine pleasure centre in your brain so that you struggle to feel pleasure again from normal stimuli e.g. good food, good company etc leading to a feeling of emptiness without the high of the drug. The obvious side effect of this is depression and the damage could be very long lasting.

[orbtastic]

He's always at the City games when I go. Apparently a few years ago he had the top price box and stuff and over the years has gradually come down in the world to the point now where he's in the regular bar now with the rest of the peons.

My mate told me that he and Ray were in Vegas doing a negotiation for a fight with DLH and others around a table. Ray's phone goes mid-chat, says sorry lads got to take this. Goes off for five minutes, DLH kinda looks a bit puzzled. Ray comes back beaming and says sorry about that, had to take it, hall stairs and landing quote in Hulme. Apparently they all looked at him like he was insane and then cut about 80% off the purse as they knew right then they were dealing with a balloon.

Haha good story but that's bollocks they gave the carpet shop up a good few years before Richard went to America

In fact it’s a croc on a similar kind of scale to that time they said Iraq could nuke us inside 45 minutes. I.e. “sexed up”. When that poor geezer got offed in the woods.

You absolutely sure about that?

[J]

I for one believe, that many people in the public eye, are the type of people who require fame and adulation, because they have borderline personality disorders, hardly surprising then, that they often have serious struggles in life.

It's very easy to judge, but I'm not one to leap to conclusions.

Alcohol/substance abuse and depression go hand in hand, it's a vicious cycle, depression can lead to drink, which temporarily exacerbates the feelings of self loathing, but long term leads to worse bouts of depression.

Yup, my wife is a recovering alcoholic and has now done 18 months clean, for 2 years the doctors thought she had depression that she self medicated with drink, turns out it was the other way round, she was an alcoholic was hiding it and this was making her depressed.
I don't want to go into to many details but this story has a happy ending, as you know Jimmy I was and still can be a hedonistic fecker, now I choose my moments, cos ironically I have cut down by over a third my drinking, over 75% drug in take and 50% smoking. Found out I was still rather good at playing cricket again basically having some interests other than getting twatted every weekend.

Could be if my wife hadn't gone through what she had I might be dead by now or on the way, who knows.

We are happier than we ever have been, kids are happy and generally the household is a normal dysfunctional British household that we all would want to be in, I still have a drink at weekends and my wife is looking better than ever having lost over 15 llbs not drinking. I also lost over two stone - though I have put half a stone back on.

I can and do still smash the arse out of it every two months or so but that's a time and a place for it and its a balance, something you need as you get past 40 cos lets face it, it doesn't do you much good. THe only down side is finding time to hook up with everyone, cos meeting for a cup of tea is just plain wrong.

Point being it aint how you start its how you finish, life is learning experience but you got to decide which subjects you gonna take.

That's the choice Ricky now needs to make, what lessons have I learned and what am I going to do with that knowledge moving forward.

I wish him all the best some of the best nights Ive ever had have been supporting Lennox and Ricky be it Vegas, Manchester or my front room with my mates in South East London....(or conservatory jumping around like nutcases til 7 am - hey Jim!)

[Pugilist-specialist]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C1gJxnxWQAAADUw.jpg

Junior and Hatton today

[Pugilist-specialist]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C1gJxnqW8AEZ55H.jpg

Hatton in Wincobank today

[TheCobra]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C1gJxnxWQAAADUw.jpg

Junior and Hatton today

Best of pals!

[jamesmcdonnell]

I for one believe, that many people in the public eye, are the type of people who require fame and adulation, because they have borderline personality disorders, hardly surprising then, that they often have serious struggles in life.

It's very easy to judge, but I'm not one to leap to conclusions.

Alcohol/substance abuse and depression go hand in hand, it's a vicious cycle, depression can lead to drink, which temporarily exacerbates the feelings of self loathing, but long term leads to worse bouts of depression.

Yup, my wife is a recovering alcoholic and has now done 18 months clean, for 2 years the doctors thought she had depression that she self medicated with drink, turns out it was the other way round, she was an alcoholic was hiding it and this was making her depressed.
I don't want to go into to many details but this story has a happy ending, as you know Jimmy I was and still can be a hedonistic fecker, now I choose my moments, cos ironically I have cut down by over a third my drinking, over 75% drug in take and 50% smoking. Found out I was still rather good at playing cricket again basically having some interests other than getting twatted every weekend.

Could be if my wife hadn't gone through what she had I might be dead by now or on the way, who knows.

We are happier than we ever have been, kids are happy and generally the household is a normal dysfunctional British household that we all would want to be in, I still have a drink at weekends and my wife is looking better than ever having lost over 15 llbs not drinking. I also lost over two stone - though I have put half a stone back on.

I can and do still smash the arse out of it every two months or so but that's a time and a place for it and its a balance, something you need as you get past 40 cos lets face it, it doesn't do you much good. THe only down side is finding time to hook up with everyone, cos meeting for a cup of tea is just plain wrong.

Point being it aint how you start its how you finish, life is learning experience but you got to decide which subjects you gonna take.

That's the choice Ricky now needs to make, what lessons have I learned and what am I going to do with that knowledge moving forward.

I wish him all the best some of the best nights Ive ever had have been supporting Lennox and Ricky be it Vegas, Manchester or my front room with my mates in South East London....(or conservatory jumping around like nutcases til 7 am - hey Jim!)

Oh yes J, those were the days. Im doing a dry january, but come february we should relive those times.

[PredatorHayds]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C1gJxnxWQAAADUw.jpg

Junior and Hatton today

Best of pals!

Remember when Ricky asked for some sparring to be sent down from Sheffield for one of his fighters.
He said he was in shock when Witter walked in the door. No bitterness from either side and they had some banter and get on well now.

One of the nice sides of our sport seeing old rivals become friends.

[veriton]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C1gJxnxWQAAADUw.jpg

Junior and Hatton today

It's not too late! Get it on the Joshua undercard. I'd kill to see that fight even now

[TheCobra]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C1gJxnxWQAAADUw.jpg

Junior and Hatton today

It's not too late! Get it on the Joshua undercard. I'd kill to see that fight even now

Something tells me Witter has kept himself in 'slightly' better shape than Ricky. Haha

[mickey1975]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C1gJxnxWQAAADUw.jpg

Junior and Hatton today

It's not too late! Get it on the Joshua undercard. I'd kill to see that fight even now

Something tells me Witter has kept himself in 'slightly' better shape than Ricky. Haha

Junior looked well on Judge Rinder arguing about a grand, Ricky looked terrible getting a few grand to talk about his career. I don't know who's shoes I'd rather be in.

[veriton]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C1gJxnxWQAAADUw.jpg

Junior and Hatton today

It's not too late! Get it on the Joshua undercard. I'd kill to see that fight even now

Something tells me Witter has kept himself in 'slightly' better shape than Ricky. Haha

hatton was always in terrible shape between fights, im sure he'd get himself into proper nick for this one. arent him and billy graham back speaking again? it would be just like the good old days. hatton v witter, what a thought.

what is hatton, 38? witter a couple of years younger.

not far from lewis v tyson territory or pacquiao v mayweather.

come on ricky, give us one more night.

[TheCobra]

It's not too late! Get it on the Joshua undercard. I'd kill to see that fight even now

Something tells me Witter has kept himself in 'slightly' better shape than Ricky. Haha

hatton was always in terrible shape between fights, im sure he'd get himself into proper nick for this one. arent him and billy graham back speaking again? it would be just like the good old days. hatton v witter, what a thought.

what is hatton, 38? witter a couple of years younger.

not far from lewis v tyson territory or pacquiao v mayweather.

come on ricky, give us one more night.

I don't need to see old man Ricky vs old man Witter. Don't think it would be a very good fight at all at this stage!

[mickey1975]

Rick is an OLD 38.

[pimp]

Rick is an OLD 38.

Good point, when you hear rumours about froch you can kind of believe it cos he's still in very good shape and looked after himself well and lived his life, then you see Ricky and he's a proper mess and looks old and terrible

[Cyclops]

Rick is an OLD 38.

No f*cking WAY Hatton is 38...

*checks Boxrec*

Jesus.

[veriton]

Bit of hair dye and being in fighting shape would do him wonders. He'd forget all that depression shite too. Why not a 10 rounder as the main support to a big bill?

[Rexob]

It's not too late! Get it on the Joshua undercard. I'd kill to see that fight even now

Something tells me Witter has kept himself in 'slightly' better shape than Ricky. Haha

hatton was always in terrible shape between fights, im sure he'd get himself into proper nick for this one. arent him and billy graham back speaking again? it would be just like the good old days. hatton v witter, what a thought.

what is hatton, 38? witter a couple of years younger.

not far from lewis v tyson territory or pacquiao v mayweather.

come on ricky, give us one more night.[/quotei

Witter is 42/3 years old?

[mickey1975]

You're being silly. Ricky isn't fit to fight and never will be again.