Billy Graham says Ricky Hatton was "heroic" in overcoming a chest infection to fight Juan Lazcano.
Former trainer would have not allowed Hitman to fight Lazcano
Billy Graham says Ricky Hatton was "heroic" in overcoming a chest infection to fight Juan Lazcano.
Hatton was in trouble in rounds 8 and 10 en route to winning a lop-sided decision over the Mexican at Eastlands in May.
But Graham, who was in the Hitman's corner for the final time, believes the fight should never have happened that night.
He says Hatton's training was severely hampered by a lingering chest infection.
Graham told
Ring magazine: "If I had been in control, I would have pulled him out. The fight would not have taken place when it did.
"Ricky was nothing short of heroic, given the way in which he had to push himself through training. I knew that it would not be a vintage Ricky Hatton performance."
Graham says it was obvious from the corner that night that Hatton was struggling.
He added: "Long before he got into trouble in the eighth and 10th rounds, in fact it was during the fourth, I turned to Mick Williamson, the cutman, and asked him: 'Do you think Ricky's slowing?' It was a rhetorical question because I knew the answer myself. He was definitely slowing because it wasn't the real Ricky Hatton in there that night.
"Don't get me wrong; I'm not making little of what Lazcano did. I expected Lazcano to be tough, but the virus had sapped too much of Ricky's strength."
