In his first major American fight and first in the welterweight division, Manchester's own Ricky Hatton won by unanimous decision over Luis Collazo (26-2, 12 KOs) in front of many of his fellow British fans at the TD Banknorth Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. With the victory, Hatton remains undefeated (41-0, 30 KOs) and claims the WBA welterweight title.
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The end decision was unanimous but the fight itself was anything but. Ricky Hatton, in his first welterweight fight, was put to the test by Luis Collazo in a twelve-round rock 'em, sock 'em title fight. Hatton, who is a huge star back at home in England, is trying to bring his aggressive, hard-hitting style to American soil and he showed just that on Saturday night. The only problem was his opponent didn't back down and fought just as tough. Collazo actually was the winner on the Blog and Weave scorecard (114-113) and ESPN.com scored it 115-113 for Collazo. But the only decision that mattered is that of the official judges, two of whom scored the fight 115-112 for Hatton and the third had it 114-113 for Hatton. It was a back and forth fight, with neither boxer taking huge control of any rounds, aside from the opening round when Hatton caught an off-balance Collazo on the chin and sent him to the canvas and the final round, when Collazo clearly had Hatton hurt but couldn't return the favor in knocking him down.
Collazo, for the most part, stuck to his game plan of staying outside and using his reach and size to his advantage, keeping Hatton at bay with his jab. The rounds in which Collazo most often struggled was when he fought Hatton's fight, inside and exchanging close power punches. Hatton showed relentless attack all night and was clearly not afraid of Collazo's size. It was Hatton's first fight at 147 pounds and he showed decent conditioning, still being aggressive and active all the way up to the final bell. However, Hatton did take a beating from Collazo, who isn't known for having heavy punches. Hatton's face was black and blue after the fight and his right eye almost swollen shut and he admitted Collazo had hurt him a few times during the fight, which raises the question: Can Hatton handle the welterweight division against the likes of Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Oscar De La Hoya? Hatton hardly looked like the same fighter who destroyed junior welterweight champion Kostya Tszyu last year. I think Hatton is a natural junior welterweight and ought to return to 140 pounds, even though it lacks the stars of the other divisions.
As for Collazo, even with the loss, his stock went up. He fought an almost perfect fight and just missed beating 2005's Fighter of the Year. Collazo is well deserving of a title shot soon, if not a rematch with Hatton.
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Round-by-Round Review
ROUND ONE
Within seconds, Collazo is caught off balance by a Hatton left hook, causing him to fall. I wasn't the cleanest of knockdown, but it's a knockdown nonetheless. Hatton is relentless but not wild, constantly getting inside and willing to trade punches with Collazo. SCORE: 10-8, Hatton
ROUND TWO
Again, Collazo loses his balance and falls, but this time it's ruled a slip. While Hatton retreats, Collazo complains to the referee. Hatton is a pest, albeit a very strong pest, constantly attacking, mostly landing to Collazo's body. During the middle of the round, Collazo finds his groove and begins throwing (and landing) a lot of combinations. SCORE: 10-9, Collazo (19-18, Hatton)
ROUND THREE
Between rounds, Hatton's trainer tells him to "mix it up." At this point, it's been mostly power punches for Hatton. Hatton starts off the round with a few jabs, but soon reverts to inside fighting, landing lots of body shots. Hatton misses a hook and the two boxers butt heads accidentally after the exchange. Hatton is fine, but Collazo has a cut on the top of his head. SCORE: 10-9, Hatton (29-27, Hatton)
ROUND FOUR
Collazo looks confident, as he starting to measure Hatton up with his jab. A big left by Collazo snaps Hatton's head back but Hatton comes right back and goes to the body. The clinching has picked up due to both boxers willing to fight inside. A nice short right hand by Collazo again connects with Hatton's chin. SCORE: 10-9, Collazo (38-37, Hatton)
ROUND FIVE
Hatton looks slow, either from the move up in weight or from chasing Collazo around the ring, who's doing a good job fighting his fight on the outside. Collazo keeps his distance then goes in for a combo. He does this again. Hatton looks frustrated by Collazo's slick style. The referee calls timeout and has Collazo's cut looked at. The ring doctor says it's fine. In the closing minute, Collazo throws a good left hook. As the bell rings to end the round, Collazo pounds his chest. SCORE: 10-9, Collazo (47-47, even)
ROUND SIX
Again, Hatton looks confused on how to beat Collazo. Collazo throws a few good combinations, scoring on all of them. A nice right by Hatton is followed by a good right jab by Collazo. The momentum of the fight has started to swing in favor of Collazo. SCORE: 10-9, Collazo (57-56, Collazo)
ROUND SEVEN
The two trade punches in the middle of the ring. Hatton looks sluggish, not throwing many punches as Collazo now begins to attack the body, per instructions from his corner between rounds. Both are warned by the referee for holding inside. Hatton picks up the pace and starts mixing up hooks and uppercuts. Chants of "Louie, Louie" start. SCORE: 10-9, Hatton (66-66, even)
ROUND EIGHT
Hatton continues his intensity from the last round by attacking inside, landing some pounding body shots. Collazo counters with good combos but can't score a big punch as Hatton continues to tie him up. Collazo pleads to the referee but to no avail. A right hand by Collazo to Hatton's chin lands. Again, Hatton gets in close and alternates right and left hooks. SCORE: 10-9, Hatton (76-75, Hatton)
ROUND NINE
For the second time in the fight, Collazo is sent to his corner to retape his gloves. Collazo comes back and gives Hatton a taste of his own medicine, connecting combinations to Hatton's body. Hatton answers with a series of shots to Collazo's stomach and side. Collazo still seems more active this round, and lands a right hand that rocks Hatton. SCORE: 10-9, Collazo (85-85, even)
ROUND TEN
Collazo and Hatton tangle up, causing Collazo to slip and fall. With Hatton's right eye quickly closing, Collazo returns to the jab. The two exchange solid right hooks. Hatton follows up with a really big right hook. Collazo ends the round with a body-body-head combination. SCORE: 10-9, Collazo (95-94, Collazo)
ROUND ELEVEN
Between rounds, both corners tell their fighters "You got to win these last two rounds big." Hatton starts throwing wild punches, looking for a knockout. Collazo, on the other hand, looks calm and steady, mixing body and head shots. The round turns to Hatton's favor when he lands a good body-body combination. Hatton keeps moving forward, keeping Collazo at bay. SCORE: 10-9, Hatton (104-104, even)
ROUND TWELVE
Hatton scores with an uppercut, only to be greeted with a Collazo hook which causes Hatton to slip. Hatton throws a series of body shots and hooks to the head, scoring well. After the flurry though, he looks tired and Collazo attacks, throwing several punches in close, clearly hurting Hatton. Two huge hooks in a row causes Hatton to stumble and it looks like one more punch could send him to the canvas, but he leans in and holds onto Collazo. Hatton walks into another right hand, but comes back and fights hard in the closing minute. SCORE: 10-9, Collazo (114-113, Collazo)
Hatton by unanimous decision.
