Ricky Hatton has nothing else to prove, should remain idle

Marshall N. B., Boxing News World

After an ego-deflating defeat in the hands of the widely regarded best boxer in the world, Manny Pacquiao, Ricky Hatton’s confidence seems now rejuvenated, probably aided by his brother Matthew’s rising popularity, as news of his possible comeback next year populated British papers.

Harry Talbot of The Sun wrote “He (Ricky Hatton) admits his feet are starting to get 'itchy' and he is ready to mount a possible assault on a final world title in 2010.”

Telegraph’s Gareth Davies stated that the possible opponent of Hatton if indeed he decides to come back could be Pacquiao’s long-time nemeses Juan Manuel Marquez who was lopsidedly beaten in his last outing by flamboyant, much heavier, safety-first boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr.

While most boxing fans clamor for Ricky’s ring return, a few including yours truly thinks he should stay idle. A knock-out of that fashion against Pacquiao surely takes something away from any fighter, something that is beyond mend. Think about Mike Tyson. Gone was the intimidating, all-out brawler after he was knocked out by James “Buster” Douglas in Japan. And now, the same thing is possibly happening to Puerto Rico’s Miguel Cotto, who incidentally will be facing Pacquiao on Nov 14 at MGM Grand, after his brutal defeat in the possibly ‘loaded’ hands of Mexican Antonio Margarito.

Ricky has to realize that the people who are openly encouraging him to lace gloves again might not be thinking about his interests. Oscar de la Hoya had said “Ricky's young, Ricky still has what it takes. He can still have a bright future.” But, isn’t de la Hoya Ricky’s US promoter? Has anyone ever heard of a promoter counseling his price fighter to retire? Interestingly, and worthy of note, Golden Boy Promotion’s stable of fighters, with the exception of newly crowned WBA heavyweight champion David Haye, is generally not as marketable as Bob Arum’s Top Rank. Upcoming fights are dull, i.e. Bernard Hopkins against relatively unknown Enrique Ornelas,  Winky Wright against mediocre Grady Brewer. For GDP, Ricky's comeback fight against Juan Manuel Marquez is not only a good business move, but an obvious necessity.

Ricky Hatton has nothing else to prove. He is already very rich. He has beaten some of the greats in boxing- one in particular is Kostya Tszyu. His only losses were from the two best boxers in the world which is not at all a thing to be ashamed of. He has made his family proud and he is and will always be a great British boxing hero. There's actually no reason for him to come back.

Image Source: http://img.thesun.co.uk/multimedia/archive/00527/hatton_280x390_527314a.jpg

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