It is less than three years since Ricky Hatton squared off against Floyd Mayweather Jnr in a Las Vegas ring for one of the most enriching fights in boxing history.
Now, although they are still comparatively young men, their lives are unravelling in trans-Atlantic tandem.
The Hitman is falling apart in a haze of booze laced with lines of cocaine
The Money Man is stumbling from a racist rant against Manny Pacquiao into a court room to face charges of assault and larceny.If the Englishman is not warned off his self-destructive lifestyle, there is a serious risk that he will end up in an early grave.
If the American cannot convince a Nevada judge that he neither beat up the mother of his children nor stole her mobile phone then he could wind up in the state penitentiary.
Hatton is facing a long battle with himself which will be tougher, even, than his twin KO defeats by Mayweather and Pacquiao .
Mayweather has a fight in November but not the one the world wanted to see - and which may never happen now.
Instead of challenging Pacquiao for the mythical title of world's best pound-for-pound fighter, he will be answering $3,000 bail and trying to defend himself against a prison term of anything up to 10 years.
The question of drugs swirls around both of them.
Hatton, thank goodness, is not in denial, His admission that he needs help to combat the ravages of his binges on coke as well as alcohol and fast food can be a first step towards salvation.
Mayweather's insinuations that Pacquiao bulked up from featherweight with the help of performance-enhancing substances are rebounding on him in the US.
Michael Marley, a New York lawyer who is also one of the most widely read boxing columnists over there, is not alone in noting the irony that Mayweather's extreme behaviour bears some similarities to steroid rage.
Since there is no more evidence of Mayweather using drugs than there is of Pacquiao, it is more likely that the Money Man cannot deal psychologically with the Pacman's ascendancy over modern boxing.
Fewer tears will be shed for Mayweather than for Hatton.
For all that he so desperately wants to be loved, Mayweather can neither contain the foul-mouthed arrogance which offends so many nor summon up the grace expected of a people's champion.
This man's idea of a charm offensive is to tell everyone how effing wonderful he is.
By contrast, Hatton's plight will evoke as much sympathy as it will provoke condemnation.
Generosity of spirit, not uncontrolled ego, is his problem. The Hitman is a warm, funny, engaging and - albeit with warts and all - genuine character.
As such he has won the affection not only of millions in Britain but of many in America, where they also loved his warrior exploits in the ring.
A natural-born fighter, Hatton thrilled and entertained us down his fighting years. How sad that, after deferring confirmation of his retirement, his world-beating career should end in sordid revelations on the front page of the News of the World.
Perhaps it was always going to be thus for a working-class boy whose hunger for doing everything to extremes was a primal factor in his drive to the top.
Mayweather had to fight his way up, too. But how different they have been since they got there.
While Mayweather luridly flashes his cash, Hatton is as discreetly giving to those around him and to deserving causes as he is indulgent with himself.
Ultimately, once the scandal subsides, the Hitman will be remembered fondly and with pride by the British public.
One of the most amusing personalities ever to lace up the gloves, we will want to laugh with him, not at him.
Mayweather won their fight in December 2007 but not the battle for hearts and minds.
Now, as the Hitman battles with his demons and the Money Man rages against all who dispute his claim to be the greatest, the Pacman will simply get on with proving his magnificence by fighting Antonio Margarito in front of a 75,000 crowd in the glittering new Cowboys Stadium in Dallas on November 13.
If only everything in boxing were that simple.
Source: dailymail.co.uk
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