Couture calls for Ricky Hatton to join UFC

**MMAMickey** · Posted On: 11/01/2009 2:51am

Originally Posted by Fighting Cephalopod

1) Entire standup game is based on lunging into the clinch
2) Has never wrestled
3) Is British, genetically designed to suck at wrestling
4) Would be undersized and fighting at lightweight, the wrestliest division

truly he will go far

1)recently Hatton hasn't been playing that game..

YouTube - Ricky Hatton vs Paulie Malignaggi Part 1

.. the only time he went for a clinch he bridged the gap with strikes, and most of the time he clinched it was because he was being grabbed.

2) you can learn to wrestle its no big deal

3) Dan Hardy does pretty well, and Bisping v Evans showed that decent jujitsu can save your ass against a wrestler anyway

4) most fighters in the UFC lightweight division aren't particularly tall.. Tyson Griffin, Joe Stevenson, Matt Serra (welterweight). TBH it will take him a long time to learn but he has a stocky physique naturally, he wouldn't have to make weight for boxing and he can really hit.

.. My biggest question to do with him is can he still take a punch after those two KO losses

**Fighting Cephalopod** · Posted On: 11/01/2009 12:59pm

Originally Posted by MMAMickey

2) you can learn to wrestle its no big deal

lol

just lol

**MMAMickey** · Posted On: 11/01/2009 1:29pm

what so wrestling is now some ancient lost art amongst the ranks of the chun and ninjers? You can learn to wrestle. Ian Freeman started out as a boxer and became a pretty good grappler

**G-Off** · Posted On: 11/01/2009 2:06pm

Originally Posted by MMAMickey

what so wrestling is now some ancient lost art amongst the ranks of the chun and ninjers? You can learn to wrestle. Ian Freeman started out as a boxer and became a pretty good grappler

Cheick Kongo started off as a kickboxer and still has no fucking idea what a sprawl is.

Rick Hatton is 31, and though he says he's done kickboxing before, as far as we know he's never grappled in his entire life. Plus, as Ceph said, British people have a natural aversion to wrestling. More seriously, unless Hatton moves to California, it's going to be hard for him to find decent wrestling instruction in the UK.

**MMAMickey** · Posted On: 11/01/2009 2:16pm

Originally Posted by G-Off

Rick Hatton is 31

This is far more relevant than being british as to not learning wrestling. plus Kongo is the wrong shape, at least Hatton has a good build for wrestling.

Originally Posted by G-Off

Plus, as Ceph said, British people have a natural aversion to wrestling. More seriously, unless Hatton moves to California, it's going to be hard for him to find decent wrestling instruction in the UK.

No. We don't. We just don't do it in school, and like you said there's a lack of instructors. We have good Judo guys here, and that is (very) basically wrestling with added throws.. (unless you exclude the now illegal double leg)

**Zaii** · Posted On: 11/01/2009 2:17pm

Just playing devil's advocate, but didn't GSP have zero wrestling pedigree before he got into MMA?

**honesty** · Posted On: 11/01/2009 2:37pm

Originally Posted by MMAMickey

This is far more relevant than being british as to not learning wrestling. plus Kongo is the wrong shape, at least Hatton has a good build for wrestling.

No. We don't. We just don't do it in school, and like you said there's a lack of instructors. We have good Judo guys here, and that is (very) basically wrestling with added throws.. (unless you exclude the now illegal double leg)

Plus I know Cali is probably better than Glasgow to move to, but... http://www.dynamosambo.co.uk/

**G-Off** · Posted On: 11/01/2009 2:51pm

Originally Posted by MMAMickey

This is far more relevant than being british as to not learning wrestling. plus Kongo is the wrong shape, at least Hatton has a good build for wrestling.

Wrong shape? If you mean too muscular, look at Jeff Monson or BROK®. If you mean too tall/lanky, look at Tim Sylvia's boring-but-hard-to-take-down self. No, Cheick is just grapple-tarded.

Originally Posted by MMAMickey

No. We don't. We just don't do it in school, and like you said there's a lack of instructors. We have good Judo guys here, and that is (very) basically wrestling with added throws.. (unless you exclude the now illegal double leg)

That's the factual basis behind facetiously saying that British people are genetically sucky at wrestling. Basically if Hatton is going to do this, he'd have to plunge in headfirst by moving to Cali to train with Couture. There won't be any "testing the waters" by training in some high-level wrestling in the UK because it's much harder to find.

Originally Posted by Zaii

Just playing devil's advocate, but didn't GSP have zero wrestling pedigree before he got into MMA?

There is but one GSP, and he started MMA well before 31, in a country with a better wrestling base than England. It's possible that Hatton is an innate grappling genius, but like I said...there's only one GSP so far.

**MMAMickey** · Posted On: 11/01/2009 2:53pm

Originally Posted by G-Off

Wrong shape? If you mean too muscular, look at Jeff Monson or BROK®.

lol i hadn't even cosidered that kongo was muscular

**PDA** · Posted On: 11/01/2009 3:07pm

3) Is British, genetically designed to suck at wrestling

YouTube - British wrestling Big Daddy vs Giant Haystacks

I cant see Hatton getting involved in MMA unless he has MA previous like David Haye that im not aware of, starting from scratch with just a boxing back ground would mean starting at the bottom IMO and perhaps taking some low level losses which after the big stage he is on at the moment i cant believe he would want to risk.