Former two-weight world champion Ricky Hatton has stated that he believes the disappointing Mayweather vs. Pacquaio fight has damaged boxing’s reputation.
Speaking to the BBC, the British-born fighter said: “It was damaging for the sport. I can’t imagine there is anyone out there saying they loved it. Considering they’re two all-time greats, the money they walked away with, what the fans had to pay, it was all a bit of a letdown. Then when Manny blamed his defeat on a shoulder injury,it soured it even further.
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“Boxing has UFC (The Ultimate Fighting Championship) breathing heavily down its neck and it was the first boxing match that had crossed over into the mainstream for a long time, so we needed it to be exceptional. But there were more negatives than positives.
“If you’d got up at 5am to watch it in the UK and you hadn’t seen a fight in years, you might not bother watching boxing again.”
Hatton lost out to Mayweather back in a tenth round stoppage back in 2007.
The Mayweather and Pacquiao fight was widely criticised, with it being the most financially successful bout in the sport’s history but failing to live up to expectations, with Mayweather achieving a victory on points and neither man looking for confrontation. While Hatton commended Mayweather’s approach to the fight, branding his movement “unbelievable,” he also said that the champion “is not bothered about pleasing the crowd” but rather “doing what he does and getting paid.”
Hatton also put his full support behind Amir Khan, who wants a shot at Mayweather’s undefeated streak, saying: “If anyone’s going to beat Mayweather, it’s Amir.”
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