"If I decide to come back, it would need to be a fight to excite me. One person on my hit-list is Floyd Mayweather," stated former jr. welterweight champion Ricky Hatton in a recent interview with BBC Radio Stoke. Since his devastating second round knockout loss to Manny Pacquiao back in May, Hatton has been busy focusing on his fledgling promotional company. Although many in the industry speculated that he might retire after the loss, it appears the hunger still burns inside the Manchester native and a rematch with the first man to beat him could very well be on the horizon.
"I would rather give it another go and I would rather him knock me out again. At least I can say I tried," he continued. "To be honest with you, I felt I was hard done to in the fight. The referee kept breaking me and didn't really let me impose my style on him. I'd rather go in there and find out whether it is me feeling sorry for myself or was I actually treated a little bit harshly by the referee." Considering that Hatton is coming off of a loss, a rematch with Mayweather might sound unwarranted to some, but in all likelihood, it's certainly a possibility. Although Hatton was stopped in the 10th round in his bout with Mayweather, many fans, particularly those of The Hitman, felt that referee Joe Cortez unfairly showed favoritism towards Mayweather, not allowing Hatton to fight on the inside where he does the majority of his damage.
Ironically, it wasn't too long ago that Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer hinted that Mayweather could possibly go on a world tour, fighting opponents overseas. "I mean, he has such a global star, has such a truly global reach. I was with him in England. The guy could do a world tour. The guy could do a world tour, do two, three, four fights overseas like Ali used to do. Nobody has done that," Schaefer would tell Bill Emes of BoxingScene.com. In fact, shortly after Mayweather announced his return, he held his first public workout since coming out of retirement in front of a packed crowd at the Peacock Gym in London, England. Needless to say, a rematch with Hatton would sell extremely well in Hatton's backyard.
Hatton added, "That's what being a champion fighter is all about. Normally you would run a mile against people that have just knocked you out, but I want to get in there again with him if I decide to come back." Although Hatton remains noncommittal about his own return, it's clear that he feels that there's still some unfinished business left when it comes to his career. Given that a rematch would likely make dollars, don't be surprised if it also makes sense for Mayweather's next fight.
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