Ricky Hatton to come out of retirement and return to boxing aged 43

[Enlightened-One]

"Ricky Hatton to come out of retirement and return to boxing aged 43"

Fans are set to get the chance to watch Hatton in action once again with the 43-year-old boxing legend set to return to the ring for the first time in 10 years

Ricky Hatton is set to step into the ring for the first time in a decade with a comeback to the ring against another boxing great.

The 43-year-old retired from the sport in 2012 after suffering a knockout loss to Vyacheslav Senchenko.

But now, 10 years on, he is ready for a return to the sport and is set to face Marco Antonio Barrera in an exhibition match later this year, the Sun reports.

A deal has not yet been reached between the two fighters, but talks are reportedly at "an advanced stage".

If a deal is struck as expected, it will be Hatton's first fight since he suffered defeat on his final professional comeback in 2012.

The Hitman announced his final retirement immediately after being knocked out by Senchenko in September 2012, admitting: "I needed one more fight to see if I had still got it – and I haven't."

Hatton had last year teased the idea of a possible appearance at some point, as he discussed the increasing popularity of retired fighters returning for exhibition fights.

The likes of Mike Tyson, Roy Jones Jr and Evander Holyfield have all reappeared in the ring since November 2012, while Floyd Mayweather Jr is gearing up for his third exhibition since retiring from professional boxing.

"I am all for these dream fights we keep hearing about," Hatton said last year – much to the delight of his loyal followers.

"I have youngsters coming up to me, saying, ‘I’ve watched your fights on video but I never got to see you live!' And I think that is why I’m a fan of these exhibitions.

"You’re not going to see your heroes get seriously hurt, it is a chance to see them showcase their skills one last time and you can raise a bit of money for charity too, so I’m all for it.

"There’s a couple of picks that spring to mind for me. If we are talking domestically, I would still love to see Joe Calzaghe vs Carl Froch. They very nearly came close to fighting, Joe was coming to the end, Carl was coming to the forefront.

"If you are looking at heavyweights, we saw the talk of Mike Tyson vs Evander Holyfield. Tyson blew the cobwebs off against Roy Jones Jr and Evander always looks in wonderful condition every time you see him on social media.

"He’s always training, he’s always on the pads. But I’m not sure if Evander has enough of his ear left to do eight or 10 rounds!"

The news of The Hitman's expected return to the ring comes as his son, Campbell Hatton, gears up for his latest bout against Joe Ducker later this month on the undercard of Lawrence Okolie's WBO cruiserweight title defence against Michael Cieslak.

Thoughts?

[RScarf1]

I’m glad it’s just an exhibition. Boxing was better when “The Holdman” retired.

[Phenomenal-Nutrition]

It's like re-living the good old days. Ricky picking on blown up past it featherweights

[KiwiRider]

Why can't these guys just manage their money and stay retired.
The exhibition matches between guys 40+ are never entertaining, just a blatant cash grab.

[H8Usernames]

[quote=KiwiRider post_id=5702220 time=1644605731 user_id=171362]
Why can't these guys just manage their money and stay retired.
The exhibition matches between guys 40+ are never entertaining, just a blatant cash grab.
[/quote]

Dunno. I thought that Jones vs Tyson was both interesting and entertaining.

[AngryGoon38]

Seems pretty interesting. I'm just wondering what they'll each weigh-in at.
I'm assuming that being it's an exhibition bout, it's non-sanctioned by dafault, therefore, no specific make-this-weight requirements. Hatton will weigh-in at around 160 I'm guessing, while Barrera, probably around 145. A chubby Old MW vs a chubby Old WW is what it'll be, I'm thinking.

A thought/name just popped into my mind. Prince Naseem Hamed.
That'd be something if he started training again, in preparation for an exhibition bout.
He's only 5'3 and fought at 126. He looks like he ballooned up to around 200 lbs,from what I've noticed in interviews of his since his retirement. I'm guessing that he could get down to around 150 with a good solid 3 month training-camp.
Barrera-Hamed would then be a Very Interesting possible exhibition Showdown. Hamed could then get his Revenge !

As for Hatton, if he gets into a decently sharp condition, and weighs a relatively solid 160, give or take a few lbs, onto or off of that weight/weigh-in, I think that it'd be more interesting to see him box in an exhibition against Conor McGregor.
Conor would probably weigh-in at around 180, so there Would be considerable size discrepancy, as well as age discrepancy, but Hatton having Alot more Boxing experience would hopefully even things out and make for an entertaining scrap.
Conor weighs around 190 these days. All Muscle. He's Really into Bodybuilding these days. Better that then being Really into Italian Food,Ice-Cream,and Guiness beer, I'd have to conclude.

[ironbeard]