Ricky Hatton’s admission ahead of comeback fight is heartbreaking as he dies at 46
Ricky Hatton was found dead at his home in Hyde, Greater Manchester, with the British sporting icon having been set to make a boxing comeback.
Ricky Hatton admitted he was relishing a return to the boxing ring ahead of his proposed comeback in a now heartbreaking interview, as the British boxing great has died. The former boxer, aged 46, was found at his home in Hyde, Greater Manchester.
Greater Manchester Police confirmed that a body was discovered at Hatton’s residence and stated that the death is not being treated as suspicious. A spokesperson for GMP announced: “We can confirm that we have found a body at an address on Bowlacre Road in Gee Cross at 6.45am today, Sunday, September 14. The death is not being treated as suspicious.”
Hatton reached the pinnacle of his career with his 2005 victory over Kostya Tszyu (Image: Getty)
Hatton was due to make a comeback to professional boxing in December, where he was slated to fight Eisa Al Dah, Dubai’s first professional boxer. This would have marked his first professional bout in 13 years, following his retirement after a defeat by Vyachslav Senchenko in Manchester in 2012.
His bout with the Ukrainian took place three-and-a-half years after his initial retirement from the sport, which followed after a knockout loss to Manny Pacquiao in Las Vegas. Despite retiring, Hatton did step back into the ring in 2022 for an eight-round exhibition match against fellow boxing icon Marco Antonio Barrera.
The former welterweight and light-welterweight world champion, who would have celebrated his 47th birthday in October, spoke enthusiastically about the proposed fight earlier this summer, revealing his eagerness to return to professional boxing.
Hatton, unable to attend an event in person due to an eye injury, confirmed the upcoming bout via a livestream. He stated: “I wish I was there but I had a little bad injury on my eye. The main thing is the fight will take place and I can’t wait, I’m really looking forward to it.
“It’s just one of them freakish things, I caught one of my sunglasses in my eyes and I’m very fortunate it’s not done any permanent damage. It’s just scraped the surface, so fingers crossed we’re good to go.”
Hatton has been candid about his struggles with depression and addiction, and revealed he takes pride in the positive impact he’s had on others facing similar challenges. In an exclusive interview with SunSport, he previously shared: “It inspired a lot of people, you know, for me to get in shape again at the age I’m at.
The Manchester native was preparing for a boxing return in December (Image: Getty)
“Especially bearing in mind all my problems I’ve had personally with mental health and stuff like that. It was nice for so many people to come up to me and go, ‘Oh, I’ve always struggled with my weight and to see you get it off at your age.’
“I’ve always struggled with my mental health and I’ve had my problems. And to see where you were a few years ago to what you’re doing now, it’s inspirational.” Hatton boasted an impressive 45-3 record from his 15-year boxing career. His crowning achievement came in 2005 when he defeated Kostya Tszyu to clinch the IBF and The Ring light-welterweight titles.
He successfully defended his titles in four subsequent victories before facing the biggest challenge of his career against Floyd Mayweather. However, he suffered a TKO defeat to the American in his quest to become the WBC and The Ring welterweight champion.
