Matthew James "Matty" Hatton (born 15 May 1981) is a British former professional boxer who competed from 2000 to 2013. He held the European welterweight title from 2010 to 2011, and challenged once for the WBC light-middleweight title in the latter year. He is the younger brother of former two-division world champion of boxing, Ricky Hatton, and fought on the undercard of many of Ricky's high-profile fights.

Matthew Hatton
Hatton in 2010
Born
Matthew James Hatton

(1981-05-15) 15 May 1981 (age 42)
NationalityBritish
Other namesMagic
Statistics
Weight(s)
Height5 ft 8+12 in (174 cm)
StanceOrthodox
Boxing record
Total fights52
Wins43
Wins by KO17
Losses7
Draws2

Biography edit

Hatton was born in Stockport, Greater Manchester, England, to Ray and Carol. Before becoming a professional boxer, Hatton worked for the family carpet business as a carpet fitter. He and his girlfriend Jenna Coyne have a son named Jack, who was born in 2008 and a daughter named Lola born in 2012. Unlike his brother Ricky, dad Ray, and the majority of his family who are supporters of Manchester City, Matthew supports Manchester United.[1]

Amateur edit

Hatton began boxing at the age of 12,[2] and had 22 amateur contests, winning 18.

Professional boxing career edit

Hatton's career as a professional boxer began in late 2000 with a point's victory over David White, on the undercard of brother Ricky's fight with Giuseppe Lauri. Hatton was undefeated in his first 13 fights before a point's loss to journeyman David Kirk in 2003. In 2004, Hatton went on to defeat Robert Burton to win the British Central Area welterweight title, and six months later defeated the same man to claim the light middleweight version of the title.

British Title edit

On 20 October 2006, Hatton was disqualified for low blows in the tenth and final round of a British Welterweight title eliminator against Alan Bosworth. Victory may well have given Hatton a shot at the British Welterweight title which was held at the time by Scottish boxer Kevin Anderson.

In 2007, Hatton won the IBF International welterweight title by defeating American Frank Houghtaling, and in his next fight defeated Puerto Rican Edwin Vazquez to win the IBF Inter-Continental title. Both fights were held in Las Vegas, Nevada on the undercard of Ricky Hatton's fights with Juan Urango and José Luis Castillo.

Commonwealth Title edit

On 28 May 2008, Hatton lost to Craig Watson on a points decision with scores of 116–112, 117–112 and 118–111 in a challenge for the Commonwealth welterweight championship.[3] The fight was held at the City of Manchester Stadium on the undercard of Ricky Hatton's fight with Juan Lazcano.

A short time after his loss to Watson, Hatton decided to leave long-time trainer Billy Graham and his Phoenix Camp Gym. Hatton would go on to be trained at Bobby Rimmer's Boxing Academy based in Stalybridge under the guidance of Lee Beard, who is also assistant trainer to Ricky Hatton.[4]

Hatton vs. Ben Tackie edit

Hatton fought former World title challenger Ben Tackie on the undercard of Ricky Hatton's fight with Paul Malignaggi at the MGM Grand, Las Vegas on 22 November 2008. Tackie was defeated by Matthew Hatton over 12 rounds in December 2003. Hatton defeated Tackie via a convincing unanimous decision with scores of 98–92, 98–92 and 97–93 in a performance which has been described as the best of his career.[5]

Hatton vs. Bami edit

On 28 March 2009, Hatton defeated Ted Bami via a 6th round stoppage in an eliminator for the IBO welterweight Title.[6]

Hatton vs. N'dou edit

Hatton was scheduled to fight Zab Judah on 19 September 2009 at the MGM Grand arena in a welterweight bout as part of the undercard of the Mayweather-Marquez fight.[7] This fight was postponed due to the main bout being postponed owing to a rib injury to Mayweather. Instead Hatton fought Lovemore N'dou for the IBO Welterweight title at Fenton Manor in Stoke-on-Trent on 13 November 2009, the contest was scored a draw.[8]

Hatton vs. Branco edit

Hatton claimed the vacant European welterweight title with a unanimous points win over Gianluca Branco in Dagenham on 26 March 2010. Branco, having only lost twice previous to this fight (against Arturo Gatti & Miguel Cotto), came into the fight as Hatton's toughest test to date. Branco caught Hatton with a right hand in the first round which seemed to have him hurt, but Hatton overcame it and went on to claim the decision, allowing him to fully escape older brother Ricky's shadow and become "The European Welterweight Champion Of The World".

Hatton vs. Álvarez edit

In March 2011, Hatton lost to Canelo Álvarez in a bid for the WBC light-middleweight title. The bigger and stronger Alvarez was docked a point in round seven ultimately leading to all three judges scoring the bout at 119–108 in favor of Alvarez.[9]

Hatton vs. Brook edit

In March 2012, Hatton lost to undefeated Kell Brook in an all-British clash at the Motorpoint Arena in Sheffield. The quicker, more technically astute Brook outclassed Hatton over 12 rounds, and won the fight via a Unanimous Decision.

Hatton vs. Lomax edit

In October 2012, Hatton won a 1st-round knockout to journeyman Michael Lomax. It was a comeback bout after his disappointing defeat to Kell Brook, and a determined Hatton took the fight easily.

Hatton vs. Van Heerden edit

In his first fight of the year in February 2013, Hatton lost a unanimous decision to IBO Welterweight champion Chris Van Heerden. The South African outclassed him throughout with a smarter skillset that may have shattered future title hopes for the British boxer.

Championships held edit

  • IBF Inter-Continental Welterweight title
  • IBF International Welterweight title
  • British Central Area Welterweight title
  • British Central Area Light-Middleweight title
  • European Welterweight title

Professional boxing record edit

43 Wins (17 knockouts, 25 decisions), 7 Losses, 2 Draws[10]
Res. Record Opponent Type Rd., Time Date Location Notes
Loss 43-7-2   Chris van Heerden UD 12 (12) 2013-02-03   Sandton Convention Center, South Africa
Loss 43-6-2   Kell Brook UD 12 (12) 2012-03-17   Motorpoint Arena Sheffield, England
Loss 43-5-2   Canelo Álvarez UD 12 (12) 2011-03-05   Honda Center, Anaheim, California For vacant WBC light middleweight title
Win 43-4-2   Roberto Belge KO 1 (12) 2010-11-26   Reebok Stadium, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England Retained EBU (European) welterweight title
Win 42-4-2   Yuriy Nuzhnenko UD 12 (12) 2010-07-16   Bolton Arena, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England Retained EBU (European) welterweight title, Hatton down in 1st
Win 41-4-2   Gianluca Branco UD 12 (12) 2010-03-26   Goresbrook Leisure Centre, Dagenham, Essex, England Won vacant EBU (European) welterweight title
Win 40-4-2   Mikheil Khutsishvili TKO 5 (8)
2:35
2010-02-19   Fenton Manor Sports Complex, Stoke, Staffordshire, England
Draw 39-4-2   Lovemore N'dou Draw 12 (12) 2009-11-13   Fenton Manor Sports Complex, Stoke, Staffordshire, England International Boxing Organization Welterweight Title
Win 39-4-1   Ernesto Zepeda UD 8 (8) 2009-05-02   MGM Grand, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win 38-4-1   Ted Bami TKO 6 (12)
2:03
2009-03-28   Leisure Centre, Altrincham, Greater Manchester, England IBO Welterweight Title Eliminator
Bami came in one pound over the weight limit on his first visit to the scales
Win 37-4-1   Ben Tackie UD 10 (10) 2008-11-22   MGM Grand, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win 36-4-1   Scott Woolford MD 8 (8) 2008-09-05   Harvey Hadden Leisure Centre, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England
Loss 35-4-1   Craig Watson UD 12 (12) 2008-05-24   City of Manchester Stadium, Manchester, England
Win 35-3-1   Frankie Santos UD 8 (8) 2007-12-08   MGM Grand, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win 34-3-1   Samuli Leppiaho RTD 6 (8)
3:00
2007-10-20   National Stadium, Dublin, Ireland
Win 33-3-1   Edwin Vazquez UD 12 (12) 2007-06-23   Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Retained IBF Inter-Continental Welterweight Title
Win 32-3-1   Frank Houghtaling RTD 7 (12)
3:00
2007-01-20   Paris Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Won vacant IBF Inter-Continental Welterweight Title
Win 31-3-1   Volodymyr Borovskyi MD 6 (6) 2006-12-10   Octagon Centre, Sheffield, Yorkshire, England

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Hatton Jr in a hurry". www.skysports.com. 15 May 2008. Retrieved 29 November 2008.
  2. ^ "Matthew Hatton Interview". www.cnpprofessional.co.uk. 18 May 2008. Archived from the original on 14 March 2009. Retrieved 1 December 2008.
  3. ^ "Elementary for Watson". www.skysports.com. 25 May 2008. Retrieved 30 November 2008.
  4. ^ "Hatton splits with Billy Graham". www.livefight.com. 11 July 2008. Archived from the original on 2 August 2008. Retrieved 30 November 2008.
  5. ^ "Matthew mirrors Hitman's win". www.skysports.com. 23 November 2008. Retrieved 29 November 2008.
  6. ^ "Hatton beats Bami". Manchester Evening News. 29 March 2009. Retrieved 10 April 2009.
  7. ^ "Magic Man handed Judah shot". Sky Sports. 22 May 2009.
  8. ^ "Hatton held by N'dou in IBO bid". BBC News. 13 November 2009.
  9. ^ Blake, Brian O. "20 Year Old Saul Alvarez Defeats Matthew Hatton to Become WBC Junior Middleweight Champion". Breaking News. Sports Betting World. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
  10. ^ Matthew Hatton - Boxer

External links edit