My Grandfather was a decent pro fighter and a good friend of an ex-champ named Al Hostak. Hostak was a very good fighter but took a lot of damage during his fights because of his style. At first it did not have much of an impact on him but after several years of fighting at the highest levels of the sport, Hostak started to get KOd very easily. My Great-Uncle was one of his sparring partners and KOd him (not on purpose) a couple weeks before his second loss to Tony Zale in 1940. After several years of trying to make it back to the top, Hostak retired and opened a restaurant. A few years after retirement from boxing, it became clear that Hostak had taken too many shots during his career and began to slur his speech and slow down mentally. It was a very sad sight for his friends to witness. I am posting this because I really do believe that Hattons style has led him to take way too much damage over the years. I know Ricky is a type A personality and probably will not retire thinking he has a chance to regain his stride. Maybe he can get near the top again but at what cost to his health? I really looked forward to watching all his fights but for his own good he needs to find something else to dominate outside the ring. [FONT="] Facts are facts. Too many head shots reduces your ability to take more shots and Ricky has taken a lot. [/FONT]
Nice post... I think any sane person seeing the way Ricky went out on Saturday would agree its the right time for him to hang em up.
Manny hit him with perfect punches,,,,sorry but that would of dropped him two years ago,,,,fight the wrong, throw wild punches, you will get knocked out cold
Good thread, ZippyMan! Yeah, he really needs to open a bar or something; he'd do fantastic business and can gas away to his heart's content. His style, such as it is, is dangerous for a young lion to use, much less a slightly older lion. Sorry for your loss, of course. I would imagine he was like family to you all. If you feel like talking about it, I'd love to hear more about him.
Thanks Futonrevolution, I appreciate it. As a kid I wanted to be a prize fighter and joined the police athletic league. My Dad used this example to steer me clear of trying to go any further.
Hatton is rich, so he can laugh all they way to the bank, but if he continues to fight, he might get really damaged.
You are correct, that punch would put anybody away. The reason he was so open to it is that he was already in la-la land from all the rights. I really believe pre-Collazo Hatton could have took the rights and dealt back some punishment of his own. Would he win? Maybe not but it would not have been the blown out that it was.
My grandfather was a big big fan and died a couple months before I was born, so I did my best to learn about the fighters he loved. From what I can tell, Hostak was definitely his number one; I'm sure he had him at "Slav." No fancy-pants guys who took to English like water for him! I guess I was lucky enough to be completely physically unsuited for boxing and dumb enough to try a few years anyway.
This version of Pac KSTFO out of any facsimilie of Hatton at any time. I agree he should retire he has been very well compensated considering his skill level.
Probably correct. One thing to remember is that it depends on the person's physiology. Look at what happened to Riddick Bowe. It only took a few wars to render his brain mush. He slurs horribly and was obviously affected by his few short years at the top. On the other hand, look at George Foreman. He fought forever and took many big shots to the head, but still has his wits about him and talks fine. Many examples of both types of people all through history. No telling what type Hatton is until it's too late to change the past, unfortunately.
