Baldomir’s Gain Is Hatton’s Loss
By Robert Ecksel July 23rd, 2006Ricky Hatton looks to a future absent Arturo Gatti
Ricky Hatton was hoping Arturo Gatti would emerge victorious Saturday night with Carlos Baldomir’s WBC welterweight belt fitting loosley around his waist, but the once potentially lucrative Hatton-Gatti unification bout looks to be headed for the scrapheap.
Among those especially disappointed by Saturday’s early stoppage was Hatton’s trainer Billy Graham.
“That’s just cost me an absolute fortune,” he told Sky Sports. “We really needed Gatti to win. Baldomir has got the belt, but he’s not really attractive.”
Graham believes WBA welterweight champion Hatton could handle the Argentinean without much trouble, but he also believes Floyd Mayweather Jr. must be licking his lips at what he perceives to be an easy fight.
“I think he (Baldomir) is very beatable,” continued Graham. “I think Mayweather will be desperate to fight him, let’s put it that way.”
Graham, like most who witnessed Ricky’s uninspiring debut as 147 against Luis Collazo in May, thinks Hatton would be wise to move back down to junior welterweight… were it not for the scratch.
“You’ve got to be realistic,â€? Graham said. “All the big fights are in the welterweight division, all the big money is in the welterweight division.
“The decision won’t be mine. I’ve said what I believe, I think Ricky Hatton is a light-welterweight, but money dictates.”
July 23rd, 2006 at 9:15 am
hatton is a younger version of gatti. what he needs to do is fight floyd so he can get the beat down he’s looking for. message to floyd: please don’t fight spinks, he’s a bum.
July 23rd, 2006 at 10:17 am
Hatton is special and has a great chance against Fraud Mayweather. Take a look at Fraud vs Chavez highlights for a sneak peak. Hatton will pressure him for 12 rounds. Hatton’s grit and willpower vs Mayweather’s flash and talent. Which will prevail? Hatton belongs at 140, but so does Fraud. Both are small 147’s… this is the fight we need to see. PBF vs Hatton is the biggest fight you can make in boxing to many of us.
July 23rd, 2006 at 11:18 am
I think HATTON lacks GATTIS chin but has youth on his side.Saying that I think BALDOMIR would take HATTON or COTTO but MAYWEATHER would be too quick and hard to hit.Whats funny is HATTON was trying so desperatly to outbid GATTI in a purse war but all of a sudden they don’t seem so eager to fight BALDOMIR.Why was he attractive before he beat GATTI but now that there is even more money in a fight with BALDOMIR for HATTON there not interested.I really think HATTON is way ovverrated and the first guy he fights who has a good jaw and decent punch will put HATTON out.I was actually at the COLLAZO/HATTON fight and couldn’t believe they gave HATTON that decision. COLLAZO had HATTON out on his feet during the last round and was lucky that (SLIP,I SAW IT)was ruled a knockdown.Getting back to BALDOMIR this was the first fight that he got to completely train for without having to work on the side for money.I think he looked so much better than he did against JUDAH and is only going to get better.I really think he would beat COTTO or HATTON and would give MARGIRITO a fight,the only guy he wouldn’t beat is MAYWEATHER and thats because MAYWEATHER is too quick and hard too hit for his style.I have one last point,I am a huge ARTURO GATTI fan and love him and his fighting spirit and really wish he would retire before he gets hurt.Not because he cant fight anymore but because he has money and a little girl now and doesn’t need to fight .He has given boxing fans so many thrilling moments and has nothing left to prove.Saying that I’m glad he fought the way he did because I belive had he tried to outbox BALDIMIR he would have lost without landing any powerful blows .He good his licks in and went out on his shield and if this is last fight he should be proud he went out like a man.I think it would have eatin him up inside had MAYWEATHER been his last fight ARTURO can now spend time in the sun with his family and raising his little girl .I wish him the best and would like to thank him for making so many of my SATURDAY nights exciting he taught me about never giving up and ALWAYS fought to the end.I love him like a brother and hope he gets out of boxing if not for him than for his daughter.He can walk away with his head held high and enough money to never have to work again .He’s a great guy whos loved by everyone .ITS TIME TO HAVE SOME FUN IN THE SON HES DEFINATLY EARNED IT.
July 23rd, 2006 at 1:31 pm
Gatti’s a true warrior, he fought like a man, but it still eats me up inside that he lost. Although the best wins of his career were Gabriel (the less talented brother) Ruelas, Micky Ward and Jesse James Leija, all B-level fighters who held titles, I believe he should be in the Hall-of-Fame. Both him and Vargas. They never beat the true elite fighters, but they were right up in level with the elite and were very popular and fan-friendly. I think all the memorable fights and memories should be enough to make Vargas and Gatti eventual Hall-of-Famers, one is the youngest JMW champ and unified the division, another is a two-weight champ who was in numerous Fights-of-the-Year. I wish both men the best of luck and thank them for all the memories.
July 23rd, 2006 at 5:50 pm
gatti could hav and should hav boxed to win this fight. he wanted to proves he could knock him out and i was actually crying when he went down. i was pissed, i knew it was over for gatti from rounds 4 and 5, i didnt want to beleive it but it was enevitable. baldomir is not taking hatton cotto and he should forget mayweather exists. the next time this landscaper fights, hes going down. a younger gatti would hav beaten this man. margarito is out of his class, baldomir can take a punch but after the sixth round, he was starting to feel gattis power, any other welterweight would hav went down. baldomir needs to be boxed, every time gatti ‘boxed’ and moved and jabbed and moved his head and feet (2 rounds..lol) he won the round. i love gatti and think he should hav a fare well fight and retire, well all miss him, he went down last night like a true warrior, no fear, gatti is a real man, a true italian stallion!!!!!!!!!!!!!
July 23rd, 2006 at 6:45 pm
Re: Jackman
Neither Gatti nor Vargas should be in the hall of fame. Gatti has given us many memorable fights. He is a class act. Gatti is a warrior. That said, while his heart and courage are hall of fame worthy, his career as a boxer is not.
July 23rd, 2006 at 6:46 pm
Hatton should just move down and be the best he can be. He doesn’t stand much of a chance against PBF, Cotto, or Baldomir at 147. Heck, he wouldn’t even have much of a chance against Cintron and I imagine Quintana and Paul Williams would probably handle him also. Hey, if he’s going to be the rough “John Ruiz” type, then he can’t give up so much size like he’s doing at welter.
July 23rd, 2006 at 6:55 pm
Gatti has given all of us many menerable moments over the years. I truley hope he retires now before he is seriously injured.
July 23rd, 2006 at 7:29 pm
yea calazzo won that fight i think but hatton was doing his thing, but….. thats our game. baldomir is gonna lose his next fight… watch
July 23rd, 2006 at 10:15 pm
So funny how graham tries to insult mayweather thinking he will try to fight baldomir. Wasn’t hatton the guy trying to fight gatti who was embarrassed by mayweather already? Hatton has no heart and would lose to baldomir anyways. Baldomir fights in the same style as hatton but is naturally bigger, stronger, bigger puncher, better chin and is more skilled than hatton. Hatton is the most overhyped guy in the sport right now, after his win vs old KT he called out the likes of cotto and mayweather but he has instead fought the weakest champions in their respective division (maussa and collazo) and is now fighting a joke in Urkal. Please hatton sign on to fight pbf and I hope he will send you packing back to the Uk fighting the club fighters you are so used to fighting.
July 23rd, 2006 at 10:36 pm
lot’s of opinions, but what i don’t hear is anyone predicting who fights who next? baldomir vs. who? no way mayweather gets more than 8 million to fight baldomir on nov 4. let’s face it pbf is most likely gonna have to take thbe money and fight margarito. who then is most likely to fight “tata”?
July 24th, 2006 at 12:16 am
It is funny that HATTON wanted to fight BALDOMIR so bad but all of a sudden their not so interested ,What could have happened ?I’ll tell you what happened, they realized last night that BALDIMIR is for real.He has a bowling ball for a head,an INCREDIBLE chin(he has never been down in any of his fights) is a natural welterweight who has fought 3 times at 154 with UNDERRATED power. .For BILLY GRAHam(HATTONS TRAINER)to say “BALDOMIR is very beatable put it this way MAYWEATHER will be licking his chops to fight him”is foolish.He is beatable, just not by HATTON or HATTON would be setting up a fight with BALDOMIR as we speak(hell BALDOMIR said he wants his belt ,HATTONS belt,back on national tv)and thats why all of a sudden there not interested.If MAYWEATHER thinks he will beat BALDOMIR(WHICH IM NOT SO SURE OF ANYMORE)its because hethinks hes too quick and hard to hit for BALDOMIR but HATTON is not even a good defensive fighter and doesn’t have half of GATTIS chin.I don’t know how people say HATTON is so good he foght 39 REAL NOBODIES (who wins 39 in a row without beating a top 10 guy)then beat an OLD and overrated KOSTA TZU ,he REALLY lost to COLLAZO and is back to fighting nobodies.His style is CHEAP and DIRTY and he holds more than any fighter (including JOHN RUIZ) IVE ever seen.
July 24th, 2006 at 12:18 am
I bet HATTON is happy as shit that he LOST the purse bid to fight BALDOMIR.
July 24th, 2006 at 12:39 am
Wow, you people are all over the board.
First, I got to agree with Rob again and that means disagreeing with Jackman, AGAIN. No way Vargas belongs in the hall of fame. Yes, he was a warrior who always left everything in the ring, but he beat Yory Boy Campas and Shibata Flores for his titles. His biggest fights ended up in him being knocked out. Props for beating Marquez, Quartey, and Winky (barely), but that’s not enough to get in the hall.
Second, RICKY HATTON,
July 24th, 2006 at 12:44 am
Where was I, RICKY HATTON. He needs to go back to 140 if he wants to continue as a champion. His fight with Collazo proved Hatton doesn’t have the strength to deal with full fledged welterweights and he was lucky to survive the twelfth round against Collazo. Ricky needs to listen to his own trainer and move seven pounds south.
Third, CARLOS BALDOMIR… Strong, durable welterweight. But, he still loses to any of the “3M’s” (Mayweather, Mosley, Margarito).
July 24th, 2006 at 8:49 am
clearly Baldomir will knock out Hatton. Hatton cannot stand against real welters. Look at his last go round against a mediocre one. De La Hoya needs to smartin up. Put together a Trilogy of Baldomir VS Margarito fights and let them do each other in bouts they can’t recover from, a la Barrera vs Morales and let Mosley play clean up man. Get the big fight with mayweather after the rematch of Baldomir and Margarito (Margarito wins the first fight by unanimous decision.) my choice is Mosley can out power Mayweather for split decision win and take the winner of badly battered Margarito/Baldomir unify the title and retire a champ. Millions to be made, hey I’d pay to see it. ” i’d buy that for a dollar.
July 24th, 2006 at 10:46 am
On Hatton:
Wow, tons of Hatton haters on this board! I have to agree with G-Pal, Hatton should move back to 140 where he is pretty much unstoppable, unless he can score a megafight with Mayweather, who is also a small 147.
On Hatton vs Collazo:
I realize most of us fans posting on this site are Americans, and that this fight was close, but HOW can you say Collazo won? By saying that, you simply aren’t scoring the rounds, because Ricky won more of them.
July 24th, 2006 at 10:52 am
On Mayweather:
There are a few guys that I think have a shot at Fraud. Margarito isn’t one of them. Marg looks too slow and sloppy. His hands are heavy though. Mosely (one of my fav fighters) would have a chance, but it seems to me that Mosely maybe lost his killer instinct somewhere along the way, although his speed and strength might prevail. I think Hatton vs Mayweather is the best fight in boxing. PBF isnt the hardest puncher at this weight, and Hatton is relentless. Precision vs determination.
Baldomir might be able to outmuscle PBF a bit, and Baldy is good at cutting off the ring, but PBF’s speed and legs would give him fits all night, and I think he’d lose a lopsided points decision.
Cotto would get tagged at some point.
July 24th, 2006 at 10:24 pm
Ricky Hatton is not big enough to handle Baldomir, nor is he fast enough to handle Mayweather. He simply is not in either man’s class. PBF can DEFINITELY out-box Carlos, but the guy I saw walk through some of Arturo Gatti’s best shots as if they were gnats swirling around his head had a legitimate chance to BEAT the P4P king. This is boxing we’re talking about and size does matter! I have heard and seen alot of comments regarding Mayweather as a fraud lately, but this guy is a GREAT fighter. He may be able to beat Oscar, or Shane,or Antonio, or Carlos, BUT NOT ALL OF THEM! He’s just too small and they’re too comfortable at 147!! Also, they all have very good chins, while Floyd lacks pop! I just hope a couple of these fights can be made because it’ll be good for fans to see the BEST get it on!!
July 25th, 2006 at 8:21 am
hatton and mayweather is no way the best fight in boxing. winky-margarito, and shane or oscar-mayweather.
July 25th, 2006 at 2:39 pm
Rob Nargine Says:
July 24th, 2006 at 10:46 am
On Hatton:
Wow, tons of Hatton haters on this board! I have to agree with G-Pal, Hatton should move back to 140 where he is pretty much unstoppable, unless he can score a megafight with Mayweather, who is also a small 147.
On Hatton vs Collazo:
I realize most of us fans posting on this site are Americans, and that this fight was close, but HOW can you say Collazo won? By saying that, you simply aren’t scoring the rounds, because Ricky won more of them.
^^^ I agree with Rob Narg, bunch of haters! Hatton has one bad night , where he won a close fight and the Hatton haters who are delusional cry foul! Reality checks coming, the coffee is going to be served strong again, just like when Hatton made Kostya quit on his stool. Hey, to the pretenders who will change their minds and jump on Hattons sack, with another huge win, you know nothing about boxing! Hatton will win again and again, if by the time he loses, he will be an elite grade A champion! Hatton, Hall Of Famer BABY!!!!