CASTILLO-HATTON

Anotomy of a Fight


It is the big fight, well the next one is always the next big one! Saturday 23 June the Thomas and Mack Center Las Vegas . Ricky Hatton 42-0 with 30 knockouts.....Jose Luis Castillo 55-7-1 with 47 knockouts. WOW .....impressive.... as I write this it looks great on paper! 105 fights between them, both fought on the same card at the Paris Las Vegas on January 20 with neither impressive. However their histories are impressive. Awhile back there was a match where both men had 50 fights, this is one is close, my theme being you may never again see 2 guys with so many fights matched against each other. It is an opinion of course but pretty accurate here, these two are rated the best 140 pounders in the world !

They are for me,...... the match will change that.

Hatton minus 185, Castillo plus 155 early week numbers and I think late money will come in on Castillo. You would not expect a knockout.

Castillo pretty much a big lightweight who has missed weight twice and could again. 21 scheduled 12 rounders in his career, he has been around the block and he is a top guy with his two historic matches with the late Diego Corrales topping the bill (where he won every minute of every round except the last 10 seconds of the first fight where he got knocked out). He beat Julio Diaz, Joel Casamayor, Juan Lazcano and went 12 twice with Floyd Mayweather losing a couple of close competitive decisions. This is a top level Top Rank guy who at 33 finds his biggest fight. He hit, he can take it and I hope he can be in shape and make weight! Flash both men weighed in at 140 on the nose, let the games begin!

Hatton at 29 has fought all but his last 2 and an early bout in Europe . He is the pride of England , a hell of guy who is good for the sport and of course still unbeaten. After Saturday I don't think so. Both of these guys looked sluggish with no killer instinct in them here in January. Hatton's big win a RTD over the not heard from since Kostya Tszyu, who at the time was the worlds best pound for pound. For me Hattons record has been established with perfectly selected matches on the home field. He has been impressive in the past but not the one time I saw him.

Castillo is taller 5 foot 8 to 5 foot 6 and he always looks huge in the ring. Castillo has a
69-65 reach advantage and more world class experience, no small factor here. I am hoping, unlike De La Hoya and Mayweather, they will come together, they have in the past. Pretty good buy for $50 admission, HBO it starts at 430 local, 8 bout card with Hattons brother Matthew Hatton (30-3-1) and Edwin Vazquez (22-9-2) UGLY, and he is fighting for a title? They head an awful looking undercare.

l don't recommend much but I do think this is the biggest and hopefully the best one I will see this year.