BoxRec

Kevo wrote:Why are people so sure Harris would beat Hatton? IMO this is a genuine 50/50 fight.

By Paul Upham: WBA junior welterweight champion Vivian Harris and his promoter Kathy Duva have refuted claims that Ricky Hatton and his promoter allegedly legitimately tried to make a fight with them in England. Main Events CEO Duva, her Vice-President and Matchmaker Carl Moretti and attorney Pat English attended a meeting two weeks ago with representatives of Hatton and his promoter allegedly.

"The meeting was kind of weird," said Duva, who was concerned by some media reports that they were the ones turning the fight down. "Frankly, when it was over, I didn't know that I'd had it. They came in and said they were interested in making a fight with Vivian, but they wanted options on Vivian if Vivian won. I think that is the first time ever a challenger has asked for options on the champion. I would never seriously really consider something like that. They never actually made any financial offer, but the types of numbers they were talking about were insulting frankly. They seemed to feel that Ricky was entitled to the lion's share of the revenue and they wanted Vivian to come and defend his title in England. I'm puzzled as to why this meeting even occurred."

Duva is convinced that there was never any serious intention of making a Harris-Hatton fight. "It was a show negotiation," she said. "They weren't there seriously trying to make a fight. They were sitting there so they could go back and tell someone that we were being unreasonable and we weren't. I would think that the champion coming into your hometown in most cases gets the lion's share of the money. We were talking about an equitable split and they didn't even want to talk about it. We are talking about Vivian Harris going to England to defend his world title so we at least need to be talking in the 50/50 range. Their guy just started laughing, shook my hand, said goodbye and walked out."

Putting the request for promotional options on Harris into context Duva said, "Not even Don King has suggested a thing like that in all the years I have been in boxing!"

The 25 year-old Harris, who this week was declared the sole champion of the WBA after Kostya Tszyu was stripped of his undisputed designation, is very keen on facing Hatton.

"That's the fight that I really wanted," he told SecondsOut. "That's the fight I wanted from the time that I won my world title. I'm prepared to go to England to fight him but they are not prepared to take the fight. They are just lying to their people over there, saying they want to fight me when they really don't want to fight me."

There has long been suggestions from critics that Hatton, 36-0 (26), and his promoter have been reluctant to face the best in the 140lbs division. "I think he is getting protected," Harris said of the undefeated 25 year-old from Manchester. "He is just fighting good fighters who had a career and who are now going out of boxing. He doesn't want to fight a real strong fighter because he doesn't want to lose. If they wanted to fight me they would offer a very good number and the fight would happen. They just don't want the fight. He hasn't fought any solid junior welterweight like Vivian Harris. I have no problem taking the fight. Ricky Hatton is just a normal fighter to me."

After defeating Oktay Urkal in Germany on points on April 10, Harris, 24-1-1 (16), now has an offer for a rematch in September in the same country and is also quite prepared to travel to Hatton's backyard for the fight. "Yeah, I've said it before and I'll say it again," he said. "I will definitely go to fight in England. I have just come from a fight in Germany and I am planning to go back to fight in Germany again. I have no problems going anywhere to fight anybody because I am a true champion. I want to prove to the world that I am a true champion and the undisputed champion in the junior welterweight division. Vivian Harris is never going to be scared to defend his title nowhere."

"Vivian is like a throwback," said Duva, "to when I came up in the sport when it was standard practice for champions to travel all over the world and fight challengers in their home-towns. That's where the most money was. Vivian is prepared to do that when most fighters won't."

The Guyanan boxer who lives in Brooklyn, New York in the USA has a long list of opponents he wants including Hatton, Kostya Tszyu, Miguel Cotto and Floyd Mayweather Jr.

"But I definitely want a Ricky Hatton fight," he said. "I want to see England. I know I have a lot of fans in England. I want to come there and show them my skills if Ricky Hatton takes the fight."

Asked whom he felt was the toughest opponent in the division Harris coolly replied, "I don't have any tough opponents at junior welterweight. I am the toughest at junior welterweight."


Paul Upham
Contributing Editor

June 19, 2004.

adje wrote: A truly well prepared Ricky Hatton would easily beat Mitchell,Spadafora, Gatti, Dorin, Urkal or Witter.

Neri1983 wrote:Do you fellas think Warren will let us down for Hatton's next fight or will he really deliver us a world class opponent?????