Ricky: hitman is back

It's fair to say that Ricky Hatton has come roaring back to prove he is still the top man in the world at light-welterweight.

He made a good attempt to challenge the best fighter in the world in Floyd Mayweather and wasn't quite good enough.

But on Saturday he proved he's still a force to be reckoned with by producing a fantastic performance on an absolutely unbelievable night at the City of Manchester Stadium.

There were a lot of people going into this fight against Juan Lazcano, who were questioning the quality of the opposition, but I think after Floyd Mayweather anybody seems like poor opposition.

But those who know the game know that Lazcano is a tried and tested former world champion with good names like Stevie Johnston and Wilfredo Vazquez on his record.

He's a tough Mexican kid and you know those guys don't lay down for anybody so I knew he was going to be a good tough fight.

It was great because every time it looked like Ricky might be close to forcing a stoppage, Lazcano came firing back and shook Ricky to give him a tough old nights work.

But Ricky still dominated everything and he hardly gave Lazcano a round. Lazcano had a couple of spells in rounds where he fought back, but to dominate a former world champion and a top competitor like that takes some doing and that was a star performance.

Raging inferno

The only thing I would say is that he's not the same Ricky as a few years ago. Back then you just couldn't stop him because he was like a raging inferno and you couldn't dampen his spirits.

And now it looks like it's hard work. When he was a kid he used to have a youthful vitality about him and this fire in his belly which made him unstoppable.

But even though he still boxes the same and his style and intensity are still the same, it looked like it was hard work for him and much more of an effort.

Having said that, there were lot's more positives to take out of the whole night than there were negatives. First off; Ricky announcing himself on the world stage again with a bang, but also it was great to see Sky put on show with a record breaking 56,000 crowd.

That sends a message around the world that the support for boxing in England is huge. America, with its massive population, can't get 56,000 to a fight. And I know they've had some massive crowds for fights in Mexico, but the fact that people were willing to pay £75 a ticket says everything.

Plonker

Paulie Malignaggi is the most likely candidate to face Ricky next and I can only say he has got to be the biggest plonker in boxing!

Can you imagine Jack Dempsey going in to get some hair extensions! Or the Raging Bull before fighting Sugar Ray!

He really was made to look an idiot, but he definitely has some talent and he's a good fighter, but if he threw punches as fast as he talked he would be a great fighter.

The kid's a real talent, but he has to stop thinking about what he looks like and start thinking about the substance. He went out on Saturday night to put a show on and that was what was wrong with him.

He's a better fighter than what he showed against Lovemore N'dou and I'm sure his ego will be pretty bruised, but I think if he does get the Hatton fight we will see a different Malignaggi because he is better than that.

Malignaggi's style could definitely cause Ricky a few problems because he has fast hands and when you combine that with his movement he could be a dodgy opponent for Ricky.

But it will be a great fight because their different styles will gel so well. You've got the aggression from Ricky and slick boxing and fast hands and movement from Malignaggi so I think it would be a very good spectacle.

Iron Mike

On a completely separate note I was with Iron Mike Tyson last night! He was in Gateshead doing a talk and he went down very well.

He was a little subdued but he talked very honestly and we got a good session out of him. He was a bit tired because I think he had been burning the candle at both ends but he was certainly friendly and Tyneside certainly liked him.

I've had a bit of a funny relationship with Mike because I was with him as a sparring partner 20 odd years ago and he always reminds me of the black eye I gave him and I'm always worried he going to try and get his own back on me!

I remember when he was at war with the media and he would always make us wait in the car park and then when he did bring us in he would ignore me!

So I asked him last night what he made of me going from being a scruffy kid who was trying to beat the crap out of him as a boxer to someone in the media.

And he said: 'oh I loved it, I loved to see that you had moved on', to which I replied 'you had a funny way of showing it'!

It was great to see him again though and he was on great form.