Ricky Hatton, British boxer. Biography

Ricky Hatton was born in 1978 in Stockport, UK. His parents owned a pub and a small carpet manufacturing company.

Hutton started boxing at the age of 10. At the same time, he received the nickname "The Hitman" from his first coach, with which he later became known around the world. The man noticed how the new student was violently hitting the bag and said: "Look at him, how angry he is. He's just a hired killer."

However, Hutton did not immediately think about his career as a boxer. At school, he was also fond of football and was listed in the Manchester City club as a promising midfielder. However, it became increasingly difficult to combine training in the ring and at the stadium, and eventually Ricky made a choice in favor of boxing.

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Already in his teens, Hutton began to actively participate in amateur fights. At the age of 17, he reached the finals of the World Junior Boxing Championship, but due to the bias of the judge, he took only third place. His aggressive fighting style attracted the attention of promoter Frank Warren, who offered the aspiring athlete a long-term contract.

Ricky Hatton — Professional career

Hutton entered the professional ring in 1997, and his career skyrocketed. In two years, he had 16 fights, in 12 of which he won ahead of schedule. In 1999, he won his first WBO Intercontinental welterweight title. After that, the British Boxing Journalists Club named him the best young boxer of the year.

Hutton spent the first nine years of his career in the UK, winning one victory after another. In 2000, he won another belt, and in 2004 he defeated Denmark's Holbaek Pedersen.

The highlight of Hutton's career was his victory over Russian boxer Kostya Tszyu in 2005, which earned him his first world title. The fight ended in the 11th round with a technical knockout in favor of Hutton. After that, Tszyu announced his retirement, and his opponent got a chance to enter the ring outside his country.

In 2006, Hutton won his first victory in the welterweight division, knocking out American boxer Luis Colazzo, and in 2007 he defeated Juan Urango, who competed in the light heavyweight category. Among other significant achievements of that time was the victory over the world super lightweight champion Jose Luis Castillo.

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However, in December 2007, a dark streak came in Hutton's career — he lost to American Floyd Mayweather. This defeat was a serious blow for the boxer, he faced depression and began to abuse alcohol. In 2009, Hutton suffered an embarrassing defeat against Manny Pacquiao, receiving two knockdowns and one knockout in just two rounds. After that, the athlete took a three-year break, but immediately after returning he lost to Ukrainian Vyacheslav Senchenko and actually ended his career.

In total, Hutton has had 48 fights and 45 victories in his career. He won the IBF, WBA and IBO World welterweight titles, and also became the WBA and IBO World Welterweight champion.

Ricky Hatton after his professional career

After retiring from professional sports, Hutton openly spoke about his depressive state, and also confessed to alcohol and drug abuse.

"Sometimes I didn't drink for several days, but I came home, started thinking about something, and the result was the same. I thought I was going to drink myself to death because I was very unhappy," he shared.

At the same time, Hutton began to think about a career as a coach and helping other boxers who were experiencing depressive disorders. He was a mentor to Nathan Gorman, Zhanat Zhakiyanov, Paul Upton and others. The athlete also helped Tyson Fury recover before his fight with Deontay Wilder in 2018. And in 2023, his ward Chloe Watson became the European champion in the women's light heavyweight division.

Ricky Hatton — Death

In 2025, Hutton announced that he was going to re-enter the ring after a 13-year hiatus. His fight with the UAE representative Eisa Al-Dahom was scheduled to take place in December. However, on September 15, the media reported the death of the athlete.

According to the Daily Mail, Hutton's body was found at his home in Greater Manchester. The boxer was only 46 years old. The cause of the boxer's death is still unknown, but the police are not considering the murder theory.