Ricky Hatton hosted a press conference to confirm his exhibition with Marco Antonio Barrera. The trouble is, hardly any media showed up.
It was a sad sight to see a British boxing legend unable to draw interest in his comeback to action at 43.
Hatton plans to face Barrera on July 2nd at Manchester Arena in a bid to erase memories of his last return.
“The Hitman” was beaten by Vyacheslav Senchenko when ending a three and a half year hiatus in which he dealt with personal and mental problems.
A triumphant swansong should have given Hatton the closure he needed. Sadly it didn’t happen.
Now, a decade on, Hatton wants to capitalize on the recent spate of ex-pros donning the gloves in their forties.
For the recent presser, Barrera got flown in. But media attendance was sparse as Hatton spoke about his intentions.
Hatton vs. Barrera will be a one-off showdown, a final farewell, and signal his illustrious career’s “Final Assignment.”
You’d think that media would be clamoring over each other to attend any Hatton spectacle, especially in Manchester. However, the room was largely empty as Hatton and Barrera shared many jokes about their upcoming bout.
“I can’t wait to be honest with you,” Hatton told Sky Sports News. “Even though we retired, we’re not dead. We’re still proud champions, me and Marco.
“We’ve still got to set ourselves goals. We’ve got dreams to live. It was an easy decision to make.”
RICKY HATTON EXHIBITION
On what fans can expect this summer, Hatton added: “It’s an exhibition, but it will be competitive because we’re both proud champions.
“I don’t think he’ll want to come to Manchester and have me box his ears off. I don’t think I’d like Marco to box my ears off either.
“We all know what a great fighter Marco was. No one needs to tell me. But going in there and sharing the ring with him and finding out firsthand just how good he is is going to be a dream come true.
“Trust me, none of the fans will leave this event disappointed.”
During his pomp, Hatton commanded huge crowds, even to his weigh-ins. Therefore, it is surprising to see a lack of seats filled for the official discussion.
Hopefully, interest will pick up, and Ricky Hatton will get the send-off he deserves with a packed house at his favorite venue.
The views expressed in this article are the opinions of Phil Jay.
WBN Editor Phil has over ten years of boxing news experience. Follow WBN us on Twitter @WorldBoxingNews.
