When Ricky Hatton met Floyd Mayweather in 2007, fans were treated to a typical Mayweather performance. The pound-for-pound great systematically picked apart the ever aggressive “Hitman” before scoring a technical knockout in the 10th round. While Floyd Mayweather’s fighting career reached its pinnacle this May when he fought Manny Pacquiao in a multi-record breaking fight, Ricky Hatton drifted somewhat into anonymity since his retirement in 2012, until recently when he released a memoir chronicling his fighting career.
In Hatton’s new book, the Mancunian blasts Floyd Mayweather for his egotistical antics on a flight to New York during the press tour for their fight. Hatton, who was travelling by private plane to New York, was made aware that Mayweather, who was on a separate plane tailing them, had ordered his pilot to overtake Hatton.
“A few minutes into the the journey, we’re chatting away, having a drink when the pilot gestures to me to come forward. ‘Hey Ricky, listen to this idiot. He turns on the speaker and over the radio I hear Floyd arguing with the pilot of his plane behind: “I’m not letting that motherfucker get there before me, fucking overtake them!” “We can’t do that, Sir” The pilot said. “Overtake that motherfucker – I’m the champ! I’ve got to get to New York first. I’ll pay whatever you want.”
Hatton claims in the weeks before the fight that Mayweather crossed the line when it comes to pre fight trash talk:
“Later in 2007 when our fight was scheduled, Floyd was going: ‘I’m going to beat you like a bitch, butt-f*** you.’ It was nonsense.Floyd has his way and I have mine, but there’s a line between selling tickets and disrespecting the sport.”
While Mayweather may have gotten the better of the fight in the ring, Hatton got the best of the post-fight ribbing by finishing his story with a simple question:
“What’s the point of being the world’s best fighter if everyone thinks you’re a dickhead?”
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