Hatton, a brutally honest and deeply personal documentary film with unprecedented access to Ricky ‘The Hitman’ Hatton will air on Sky Documentaries & NOW on August 31.
The 90-minute film will explore Hatton’s life in and outside of the ring – charting his journey from the Hattersley estate near Manchester to headlining on the Las Vegas strip.
The documentary also offers extraordinary access to the boxing icon, with honest words from the 44-year-old himself, his closest friends, family and peers on a range of topics.
Hatton’s battle with mental health features prominently in the film and illustrates the ‘depression, addiction and shame’ that followed his defeats by Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao.
The film reveals how Hatton’s estrangement from his family for nearly a decade and how the split from his coach pushed the 44-year-old to his absolute rock bottom and an attempted suicide.
Hatton, a brutally honest and deeply personal documentary film with unprecedented access to Ricky ‘The Hitman’ Hatton will air on Sky Documentaries & NOW on August 31
The 90-minute film will explore Hatton’s life in and outside of the ring – charting his journey from the Hattersley estate near Manchester to headlining on the Las Vegas strip
Sky say the ‘the documentary showcases this cautionary tale and inspirational story of a man forced to navigate a path through fragile relationships and broken dreams as he attempts to make sense of a life that appeared destined for a happy ending’.
The trailer for the documentary film, which airs today, sees Hatton say: ‘I was champion four times over but I consider myself a failure. I wasn’t supposed to end this way.’
The trailer also features raw footage from Hatton boxing as a child, training in the gym as a pro and his family screaming while sitting ringside at one of his fights.
The documentary is being regarded as a definitive portrait of a unique, working-class hero and one of the world’s most beloved boxers. It comes as no surprise fans are champing at the bit to watch it.
The Hitman is lauded as one of the popular British boxers of all time. Fans were disappointed to see Hatton walk away from the sport in 2011 but realised it was in the boxer’s best interests.
Hatton initially retired more than two years after he was knocked out by Manny Pacquiao before returning to the ring to face Vyacheslav Senchenko in 2012. However, he was stopped in the ninth round of their fight.
As a result, Hatton decided to hang up his gloves for good – with a record of 45 wins – 32 of which were by knockout – and just three defeats.
Hatton’s battle with mental health features prominently in the film and illustrates the ‘depression, addiction and shame’ that followed his defeats against Mayweather and Pacquiao
At the time of his official retirement, Hatton said: ‘A fighter knows when it’s not there, and it’s not there. I’ve had too many fights and burnt the candles at both ends.
‘I’ve lost four and half stone for this and my sparring was great but I’m not going to put myself through that torture again.
‘I got the answers. I was crying in the ring and no doubt I’ll be crying tonight but I’m happy. I had to go in there and find out and I did.
‘I’ve no complaints. It’s been three and a half years and you all know the story. I needed to put a few demons to rest and I said before the fight I felt I’d already won and that hasn’t changed.’