Matthew Hatton European title defence

---

Hatton Promotions present a night of championship boxing featuring:

Matthew Hatton v Yuriy Nuzhnenko
Martin Murray v TBA
Craig Watson v TBA
Kieran Maher v TBA
Rhys Roberts v TBA

It is on Friday 16th July the ticket prices are as follows

£30.00 General admission
£50.00 Reserved seating
£75.00 Ringside
£95.00 VIP Ringside

Tickets can be bought from

0161 775 7500

or online at:

http://www.ticketline.co.uk/tickets/13246636/a-night-of-championship-box

Doors Open 6:00pm First Fight 7:00pm

All boxers & bouts are subject to change, without prior notice Searches in operation. The Promoter has the right to refuse entry. No refunds for late entry.

---

By Terry Dooley

Manchester’s Matthew Hatton looks to consolidate his position in the world welterweight rankings when defending his European title against Yuriy Nuzhnenko at the Bolton Arena on the 9th of July.  ‘Magic’ won the vacant belt by defeating Italy’s experienced warhorse Gianluca Branco in Dagenham back in March.  It was Hatton’s second fight under new trainer Bob Shannon.  Their first fight together, a fifth round TKO over Mikheil Khutsishvili, saw Shannon step in at late notice when Matthew’s previous trainer, Lee Beard, decided to travel to the USA to work with Juan Guzman.

Shannon is a well-known figure in the local fight community; Hatton saw Bob’s work up-close as the trainer works out of the state of the art Hatton gym in Hyde.  “I’d worked with Bob previously,” explained Matthew.

“Lee Beard, who was training me at the time, was over in America working with Tim Coleman.  I was in the gym and getting back into my training, Bob was training there in the afternoon with his lads so rather than training on my own I did a little bit with Bob.  I enjoyed working with Bob so when the split happened it was natural move.

“I’ve worked with other coaches in the area so know what I was looking at, people might think it was a convenience thing because Bob was in our gym but I knew he is a very good trainer and needed someone for the fight in Stoke against Khutsishvili.  We only had a few weeks for that fight but I enjoyed it and was learning new things.”

The plan was to then have a full camp with Bob so that fighter and trainer could gel properly only for the Branco opportunity to fall into their lap, leaving the new team with no choice but to forge a bond in the pressure cooker environment of a European title fight. 

“That fight was short notice, two-and-a-half weeks, so, again, it was a short training camp but I learned some more new things.  I think that this longer training camp will let Bob do a lot more new things with me and you’ll see a big improvement again in this fight,” stressed the 39-4-2 (15) fighter.

“People always spoke to me about Bob’s conditioning, I’m a fit fighter anyway – people have said negative things about me but there have never been complaints over my fitness – but Bob pushed me really hard and has taken it to another level.”

Shannon’s training drills are legendary, as are those epic Sunday morning runs in the Glossop hills; Hatton placed his faith in Shannon’s techniques and is already reaping the dividends.

“I was a bit dubious (about the hill runs), it was new to me, but I’ve done two or three of them and I can feel the extra fitness.  We’ve had time for this fight and I’ll have a good long training camp under my belt.  It is hard work but I’m feeling the benefit,” beamed Hatton, who feels that his fight for fistic respect was given a huge boost by the win over Branco.

“Oh yeah, definitely”, he said when asked if he had stolen a march on his domestic rivals, “I’m the European champion now and consider myself the best welterweight in Europe, Britain is included in Europe so I see myself as the best in Britain.  Branco held the EBU title twelve months ago so I think I’ve passed some of the domestic fighters.  I’d like to fight for the domestic belt sometime but Nuzhnenko is the former WBA interim champion, if I can get past him then I’ll be ready for the big boys as this guy has only lost to the undefeated Vyacheslav Senchenko for the proper WBA title.

“People go on about a few of the domestic fighters out there but my opposition of late, Lovemore, a former world champion, and Branco, a former European holder and world title challenger, is better than some of the opposition the other British fighters have been facing.  I’m beating a good calibre of opponent and can continue that run in this fight.  I believe I’m on the fringes of world class now, a win over Nuzhnenko can push me into world class.”

Indeed, Matthew feels that he has improved immeasurably in recent years, claiming that people base their judgements on the fighter he once was rather than taking into account the hard work and dedication he has shown to become the fighter he is today.

“I think a lot of criticism is down the fact that people can’t get out off their heads the fighter I used to be early in my career.  I watch some of my early fights and I really do cringe when watching them,” admitted Hatton, who believes that there is only one way to deal with the barbs that come his way.

“I prefer to hold my hands up and admit that I wasn’t a very good fighter back then.  Since I’ve left Billy Graham and worked with Lee Beard and Bob Shannon, I’m a completely different fighter.  I know where people are coming from when they base their criticisms on my early fights but you have to look at my recent fights, I’ve beaten Ted Bami, Ben Tackie, Lovemore N’dou and Branco very comfortably - I wouldn’t like to say I won the Branco one easily but I was very comfortable in that fight. 

“Look at my performances now and forget those old ones and you will see that I’m an improved fighter and a match for anyone.  I do look on those years at Billy’s gym with a lot of regret.  You can see how much I’ve moved on in such a short space of time.  I sometimes wish I’d left sooner and moved with Bob a lot sooner, look at the strides I’ve made since leaving Billy.  I’ve gone from an ordinary fighter to a European champion who could be knocking on the door of a world title. 

“I always knew I was capable of this and that is why I used to get very frustrated with my early career – I’d watch the fights back knowing I wasn’t performing like I knew I could.  Now I’m getting the coaching and showing my best form, coming into my peak at the right time.”

Matthew always felt that he had a lot of untapped potential, pointing to evenly contested sparring sessions with some top-class fighters, including his brother, Ricky, as proof of this latent talent.

“I’ve been very lucky; I’ve boxed on big bills in Las Vegas and sparred a lot of world class fighters like Steve Forbes, as well as Ricky.  That improved my confidence and it is really showing through now,” declared the Hyde-based boxer.

Matthew Hatton circa 2010 is a different fighter from the one who turned over in 2000; he has improved dramatically over time and feels that his moment is at hand.  The European title win boosted the profile of the former IBF Inter-Continental champion, though Matthew admitted that the Lovemore N’dou experience, when the fight was controversially declared a draw, still haunted him a little going into the final rounds of the Branco contest.

“It was massive,” said Hatton when reliving the European title triumph.  “Even though I knew I’d won the fight you are never sure until you hear those words, ‘and new’, especially after the Lovemore decision.  It was a great night, a great night.”

Nuzhnenko is 33 with a 30-1-1 (14) record, he is on a run of two wins since his sole reverse, Hatton feels that a win over the two-time Ukrainian national amateur champion will cement his status as boxing’s most-improved fighter as well as establishing his world title credentials.

“In boxing and in life you have to move forward,” mused Matthew.  “I’m European champion, am having my first defence and don’t want to move backwards after it so I’ll be looking for more title fights.  Ricky said he’ll try to get Senchenko for me – he’ll deliver me a world title chance.  I’ve got a big incentive for this fight; I’ve got a young family to support and a mortgage, like most people.  People sometimes forget that this isn’t Ricky Hatton this is Matthew Hatton and I have to pay my bills like everyone else.  I am looking for the big fights and big titles.”

  

Back