Hatton Hits Maussa to Stoppage

SHEFFIELD, England - Undefeated Ricky Hatton stopped Carlos Maussa with a left hook in the ninth round to add the WBA junior welterweight title to his IBF crown in a unification bout at Hallam FC Arena on Saturday.

The British fighter overcame cuts over both eyes in the early rounds to dominate Maussa with a relentless, all-out style. He floored the Colombian at 1:10 of the ninth round, following two big right hands with a hook that put Maussa down for the count in the 140-pound contest.

Hatton, who beat Kostya Tszyu for the IBF title five months ago, improved to 40-0. Maussa, who knocked out WBA champion Vivian Harris on June 25 in the United States, fell to 19-3.

"He was awkward," Hatton said. "He was swinging and swaying. It was very difficult to pin him down, but in the end I got him."

Hatton sustained a deep cut above his left eye when the two fighters clashed heads in the first minute of the scheduled 12-round bout. Another cut was opened over Hatton's right eye when they collided in the third.

Hatton dictated the pace from the outset, but seemed to be rushing in the early rounds and struggling to find his rhythm. By the fourth round, he took firm control with powerful body punches and combinations, while Maussa began to tire.

It was Hatton's first fight since his bitter split from promoter Frank Warren. Warren had threatened to seek a court injunction to keep Hatton from fighting.

"I could have performed a bit better," Hatton said. "`I think I'm a lot better than that. But you've got to understand what I went through outside of the ring to get this fight on."

Phil Banerjee
Contributing Editor

Information from other publications and wire services was used in the compilation of this report.