There is little in the sport of boxing that will ever throw Floyd Mayweather Sr. for a loop. An accomplished amateur who later embarked on his own professional career, the outspoken trainer is as confident as they come and is also the man responsible for immersing his son Floyd Jr. into the sport as a practical infant.
Suffering from sarcoidosis, a lung disease that can be taxing and debilitating, Floyd Sr. seems to have a more modest outlook on the world today despite his occasional rants and makes headlines more so for the quotes that come out of his mouth compared to his recent duties as a trainer. Outside of former Jr. Middleweight champion Fernando Vargas there aren?t any high-profile clients on Senior?s list and he instead occupies his time in the Las Vegas area trying to appreciate the simple things in life while spending as much time as he can with his granddaughter Sanai.
During his days as a trainer Floyd Sr. may have trained the likes of his son, Oscar De La Hoya, Laila Ali, Joan Guzman, and others but none of them made for as much of an unlikely pairing as did Manchester?s Ricky Hatton, who united with Mayweather Sr. in late 2008. While the duo?s time together was short lived their conversations were full of great banter and you couldn?t help but appreciate the differences in their personalities.
Hatton turned professional on September 11th, 1997 with a first round stoppage over Colin McAluey and began to build a following the United Kingdom that came from his aggressive style and rowdy yet affable personality. Around the turn of the century Hatton began stepping up against faded former champions and fringe contenders while also garnering some spotlight from the American press.
Hatton?s crowing moment came on June 4th, 2005 when he defied the odds by bullying and battering outstanding Australian champion Kostya Tszyu to capture the IBF Jr. Welterweight champion of the world. Hatton was looked at as an unproven brawler beforehand but he took Tszyu?s best shots, eventually forcing the 35-year old to remain on his stool after the 11th round.
Hatton would win his next four fights against quality opposition in the likes of Carlos Maussa, Luis Collazo, Juan Urango, and Jose Luis Castillo, all champions at one point or another in their respective careers. The Collazo bout was a Welterweight clash and Hatton seemed out of his element at 147 pounds as he struggled late before eventually pulling off a disputed decision. After waxing Castillo in four rounds he would step up for the biggest fight of his career, ironically against Mayweather?s son Floyd Jr.
Taking place on December 7th, 2007 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, the Mayweather-Hatton bout was a huge event that saw many of Hatton?s followers from England make the overseas trek to show their support. Despite starting strong Hatton would fade in front of a star-studded crowd and was eventually stopped in the 10th round. Hatton?s limitations as a fighter were on display and his star status took a serious hit.
Hatton would take a short hiatus from the sport in order to regroup and retuned to perform in May against Juan Lazcano, a capable and gritty pug who had previously lost in a title effort against Castillo years earlier at 135 pounds. Despite winning a virtual shutout on the scorecards Hatton didn?t seem to fight with the fire that had defined his career up until that point and was even stunned by his Mexican foe late in the fight. People began whispering that Hatoon looked a few steps past it and a change was soon in order.
Having worked with Hatton since his amateur days, Billy Graham was an essential part of the fighter?s corner in serving as his lead trainer. The two men experienced a wild ride together, one that lasted nearly twelve years, but he was let go by Hatton following the Lazcano win. Hatton claimed that Graham wasn?t preparing him with the same fervor or intensity that was needed before heading into battle. Mayweather Sr. would later enter the picture and Hatton suddenly had a completely different look as a fighter.
The Hatton-Mayweather Sr. experiment was first put to the test in November of 2008 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas against brash Brooklynite Paulie Malignaggi, a man never short on words or confidence. Unfortunately for Maliganggi his lack of a big punch proved to be his downfall as Hatton swarmed him and controlled their fight for the better part of eleven rounds before the towel was thrown in by Paulie?s trainer Buddy McGirt. In the win Hatton showed a few new wrinkles to his game and although the changes were subtle he appeared to have a newfound focus.
Two weeks later Manny Pacquiao would shock the masses by moving up two full weight classes and battering Oscar De La Hoya in a welterweight super fight. In the contest Pacquiao showed that he could carry his best assets up in weight as he threw fast combinations from all angles with enough power to force De La Hoya to retire on his stool after eight one-sided rounds. Almost immediately after the contest word spread that Pacquiao and Hatton would be meeting in May of 2009 and the stage was set.
Everything seemed to be in place for a gem of a fight. In one corner you had a former flyweight champion who was on a tremendous hot streak and quickly anointing himself as the world?s premier fighter while in the other you had a man who was in search of redemption and fully equipped with a new corner and different approach to his fighting style. The Philippines vs. The United Kingdom. War of the worlds. Manny Pacquiao vs. Ricky Hatton.
But what made Mayweather Sr. believe that his charge had the ability to upend Pacquiao, who had been facing a myriad of world class competition and hadn?t lost since his gutsy decision loss to Erik Morales in March of 2005? Elaborating on the situation further Floyd Sr. reveals that it wasn?t as much about what Hatton would be able to do as it was exactly what Pacquiao couldn?t.
?I always made sure that I teach defense and offense,? Senior told the Examiner as he dug into his relationship with Hatton. ?Make sure for him to use his jab because I know that Pacquiao doesn?t use his jab. All he had was two hooks and a straight left hand. That?s all that Freddie Roach teached him. No slipping and sliding, no body shots, no up and down. That?s not in his vocabulary. [Hatton] already got his ass whipped before and came to me to correct things.?
As documented in the Pacquiao vs. Hatton 24/7 series, the personalities of Mayweather Sr. and Hatton were drastically different yet the two men made steps towards finding a common ground. If there is anything you can say about Hatton, skills and accomplishments aside, it would be that he seemed to be a completely genuine guy full of humor at every corner. Always one to joke and pull pranks, Senior was at first thrown off by Ricky.
?He pulled all these jokes and said I was looking at him like he was crazy,? Mayweather Sr. stated. ?My thing was that when it was time to box with me it?s time to box. I?m no bulls*** trainer. Not that I?m a mean person, I like to have fun, joke, and laugh, but to me when it is time to fight it?s all about business. I don?t believe in slacking on nothing. All that joking and jiving meant nothing to me.?
Despite Hatton?s playful nature you could tell that the two men put in some serious work for the contest. Known for blowing up in weight in between his fights, Hatton had entered camp with a newfound dedication, knowing that his career was at stake and fully believing he had the tools to shock Pacquiao and reclaim his status as one of the sport?s true superstar attractions.
On the night of May 2nd, 2009 Hatton and Pacquiao would clash inside a packed house inside the MGM Grand. Ask anyone who was present that night and they will surely tell you that the atmosphere inside the building was beyond electric, to the point that very few prize fights get. Hatton?s followers chanted their now infamous ?Walking in a Hatton Wonderland? anthem while the Pacquiao faithful screamed equally as hard for their man. Everyone in between simply was excited for a great fight.?
The ten bout undercard rolled on as prospects Danny Jacobs, Abner Mares, and Erisandy Lara all scored victories. Ricky?s brother Matthew Hatton and Filipino Bernabe Concepcion also scored decision wins. What was notable about the undercard was that even during the dark portion of the event the MGM Grand was reportedly already filling up and the energy inside the building was palpable. Teenage pop sensation Jasmine Vallegas sang the nation anthem and moments later each man made their way to the ring.
After months of build up the two men were finally standing face to face. Referee Kenny Bayless gave the fighters their instructions and the two men touched gloves and headed back to their corners. Moments before the bell sounded HBO?s Larry Merchant noted ?They are warrior kings with armies of fans who followed them to the battle. Now they will be alone in the battle?.
The bell sounded and Hatton attempted to swarm Pacquiao, seemingly throwing much of his caution to the wind. Pacquiao remained focused and began picking Hatton off with precise counter right hands. Hatton?s wild nature was working against him and an overhead lead right from Pacquiao would crash to the side of his head and drop him to the canvas. Hatton had the look of embarrassment on his face and he seemed to realize he was in for more than he bargained for. Hatton was dropped again towards the end of the round and when looking back at the early stages of the fight Mayweather Sr. speaks with much bemusement.
?It?s like he just let the guy hit him more than anything else,? a baffled Mayweather Sr. screamed. ?Maybe Pac Man did hit hard but it doesn?t really matter if you don?t know what you are doing. I?m just saying it?s just like he stood there and let the guy clock him. Then you have a smaller man but under the circumstances that isn?t the right thing to do.?
In between rounds Mayweather implored for his fighter to remain smart and to not try to simply overpower or rush Pacquiao. Mayweather pleaded with Hatton for more head movement and to keep his hands up. Mayweather told Ricky to remember what the two men had worked on in camp but his words were of no service.
The second round was another highlight stanza for Pacquiao as he continued to tag Hatton with punishing shots. Hatton tried his best to bully his seemingly smaller foe but he had no answers for Pacquiao?s blazing speed and unorthodox attack. As the round came to a close Pacquiao would end the fight with a chilling left hand that connected flush on Hatton?s chin, flooring the gutsy fighter for the count and leaving him unconscious.
There was a mix of celebration and sorrow in the air. Reportedly there had been over 25,000 people from England who made their way to the fight and the sight of Hatton lying on the ground after being knocked out in brutal fashion was a hard sight to take in. As for Pacquiao, the performance will forever stand as one of his most complete and dominating showcases
In the aftermath of the fight there were still many questions that lingered. The loss was so crushing that Hatton hasn?t fought since, flirting with the idea of retirement time and time again. But how could a fighter like Hatton, who had shown much promise early in his career and later in his title winning effort against Tszyu, get dusted almost effortlessly? Speaking on the situation completely Mayweather Sr. reveals that despite his great training techniques, he wasn?t able to get his fighter?s full attention while in camp and that Ricky was still split in the head from the lessons he had taken in from his assistant trainer.
?The guy Lee Beard was training him when he went back home,? Mayweather Sr. said of the team?s time in England following the Malignaggi victory. ?He went back there and he trained him all over again. They went home and we all stayed together. A lot of people told me that when he came back they went into a different game plan. So everything I built, he broke it down. You can?t learn from two different trainers. You can only train with one person at a time. When you have one guy telling you this and one guy telling you that it?s confusing.?
Mayweather Sr. went on to say that there was obvious turmoil in the camp whether it was reported or not. Senior claims that Beard even asked for $260,000 for his time training Ricky, a request that was firmly shot down. But regardless of the tension in camp and Hatton having to listen to advice from varying viewpoints, the outspoken trainer concedes that Pacquiao was simply the superior fighter no matter how you cut it.
?Overall like I said I really don?t think nothing could have changed what happened in the fight,? he continued. ?It probably would have been a matter of how long it lasted. The only thing was that he was scared anyways I believe. First of all it?s confusion when two guys are training you. My thing is that I think it a ball of confusion. I think Ricky Hatton was scared more than anything.?
The Floyd Mayweather Sr.-Ricky Hatton union was one that was met with much curiosity at first but the duo ultimately crashed and burned. Despite Hatton?s proven toughness and Mayweather?s self-proclaimed abilities as a coach, the two men weren?t able to form a cohesiveness that was strong enough to overcome a fighter of Pacquiao?s caliber. In closing Mayweather Sr. reveals that while he is always in the pursuit of victory that he can only teach someone so much before everything else falls on their shoulders.
?Let me tell you something. Of course I like to win. When I win everybody wins. But the thing is at the end of the day everything is on him. It?s his call at the end of the day. He made the decision to have Lee Beard train him a second time after I got through with him the first time. It wasn?t a surprise to me that it happened.?
