Ricky Hatton reveals referee ruined his chances against Floyd Mayweather after Brit fans booed US anthem
On December 8, 2007, The Hitman went to Las Vegas with an army of fans. He came home empty handed but always a hero
RICKY HATTON is still haunted by the “embarrassing” refereeing performance he feels robbed him of a fair fight with Floyd Mayweather
On December 8, 2007 the brilliant Manchester fighter took his army of fans to Las Vegas for the biggest fight of his career against one of history’s greatest boxing brains.
The plan was to bankrupt the Money Man with his typical marching pressure style and and trademark crippling body blows.
But Joe Cortez – the infamous official who ran Conor McGregor’s sparring bouts with Paulie Malignaggi most recently – wrecked the Hitman’s gameplan before he was stopped in round 10.
Despite taking a boxing icon into the championship rounds and becoming a sporting national treasure, that painful night in Sin City still stings.
, Hatton says: “It f****** winds me up to watch it now, honestly it does.
“I knew it was going to be the toughest fight of my life. I still to this day think I had a chance of beating him but I think they pulled the rug out from under me, I really do.
“From as early as the first two rounds, I thought ‘something isn’t right here’.
IN THE HOOD Conor McGregor hides face with hoodie as he leaves swanky Mayfair nightclub at 4am
“Up close, when I was able to punch, it was working.
“And that’s the thing that will always upset me.
“I’m not saying I would have won anyway.
“But I think if I did have that half chance of beating him, the referee put a stop to that.”
Perversely, for a fighter who modestly puts his superb success down to the influence of his legion of fans, Hatton fears his support might have turned the fight against him.
The estimated 15,000 that invaded Nevada to follow the working-class hero into Pretty Boy’s den drowned out the revered American national anthem and Hatton things that could have worked against him.
He said: “You have to imagine if an American fighter came over to Great Britain and (his fans) took over our weigh-in, were in our bars, drinking our beers, singing Star Spangled Banner and then booing our national anthem on fight night.
“You can’t help but think if I was a British referee I’d think: “Who the f*** do these lot think they are?”.’