'There is, and there will always be, only one Ricky Hatton'

Ricky Hatton wanted three things as a youngster: to become a world boxing champion, to support Manchester City, and to listen to Oasis.

Life turned out to be a little more successful than that for the boy from a Hyde council estate.

'The Hitman' won world titles in two divisions, headlined a show at the home of his beloved City and became good friends with the Gallagher brothers, so close they even carried his belts into the ring for a fight in Las Vegas.

However, that doesn't tell even a fraction of the story of one of the most-loved British boxing personalities there ever will be.

Born in Stockport in 1978, Hatton grew up as the son of a carpet fitter and would enter the family trade as a teenager.

Yet while he would later turn out to be a master with his hands in the ring, he wasn't so adept with a Stanley knife, and one accident too many led to his father moving him into the sales team.

Hatton may not have had the gift of the gab when it came to selling flooring, either, but it was his wit and story-telling ability that would help the British public fall for him once his career in the ring really got going.

He first laced up the gloves seriously in Sale West Amateur Boxing Club and worked on his own in a makeshift gym in the basement of a family pub. Like any young boxer, he would ply his trade in smoky social clubs and was soon standing out as something special. Those who watched him could tell his all-action style would be more suited to the professional sport than the amateur ranks.

Hatton, who also had football trials at Manchester City as a boy, worked with pro trainer Billy Graham while he was still a junior amateur. Graham and Hatton would regularly sit on the steps outside the trainer's Salford gym and talk about how they were going to go to Las Vegas and New York together. Graham would assure a thin, pale teenager that one day the American fight fans would love him. He was not wrong, even if it must have felt like pure fantasy back then.

Firstly, it would be the British boxing fraternity who would fall head over heels for an aggressive, forward-thinking fighter with a penchant for bending over opponents with air-sapping body shots.

Hatton's professional journey began in Kingsway Leisure Centre in Widnes. There would be more glamorous stops along the way to reaching the dizzy heights of the MGM Grand Garden Arena. It was estimated that 30,000 fans flocked to Las Vegas for his 2007 showdown with Floyd Mayweather Jr, even if not all of them could squeeze into the venue.

To take such a remarkable following across to boxing's unofficial capital, you need to be an excellent fighter, entertaining and an extraordinary character. Hatton was all of that.

As he built up an unbeaten record, he tapped into the fanbase of his favourite football club at a time when City were struggling for success. Soon, though, fans of both Reds and Blues in Manchester would be backing the local boy.

If there were any early concerns about Hatton's ability to reach the top, it was a weakness around his eyes. Cuts would appear in fights that were almost as bad as the ones he made on his own fingers with a knife while trying to fit carpets.

Surgeries would eventually help and, as the wins continued to rack up, titles came.

His victory over Belfast's Eamonn Magee in 2002, when Hatton picked himself up off the canvas, showed some vulnerability but also character as he bit down to turn the fight back in his favour.

Manchester knew they had a hero. The city's biggest indoor arena was regularly filled for his fights, but promoters could have sold it out 10 times over for what was, without doubt, Hatton's career highlight in 2005 when he took on light-welterweight king Kostya Tszyu.

Staged in the early hours of the morning to suit American TV, the atmosphere inside the venue belongs in British sporting folklore. It inspired Hatton to put on the performance of a lifetime and, not only beat the man considered number one at 10 stone, but also break his will so much so that he didn't come out for the final round. The celebrations went on for days. Maybe weeks.

What made Hatton different to other sports stars was that many of those celebrations were with his friends and fans.

Nights like his - to put it in polite terms - 'not very nice shirt' nights became a routine after victories.

When stars came to visit, even the likes of Oscar de la Hoya, they were as often treated to the delights of the local pubs in Hyde as much as the flash cocktail bars of Manchester city centre.

Hatton's rise continued in the ring. After a defence of the IBF title, he moved up to welterweight to win the WBA belt against Luis Collazo in Boston, and he became a two-weight world champion.

All roads appeared to be leading to Mayweather and, after a maiden Vegas trip to beat Jose Luis Castillo, he got a date with boxing's pound-for-pound superstar.

Those who were in Sin City that week in December 2007 tell tales of thousands of British fight fans emptying the bars of alcohol. It is still talked about by staff who worked it and struggled to stock the fridges with supply to satisfy the thirst of supporters, who filled the air of the casinos with chants of "There's only one Ricky Hatton".

The weigh-in was spine-tingling as the Mancunian stared down Mayweather. Hatton, then unbeaten in 43 fights, had his hardcore fans believing he could pull off an almighty shock in the city famous for those trying to beat the odds.

He gave the American a tough night but eventually fell short as he was stopped in the 10th round. It was a defeat that hurt him more than many would realise.

It caused a split with trainer Graham in the first of a series of financial rows for 'The Hitman'. It would be over a decade before the pair settled their differences.

Hatton returned to beat Juan Lazcano at the then-named City of Manchester Stadium - his football club's home - before returning to the US to beat Paulie Malignaggi.

Yet his problems had begun with mental health and addiction - he later spoke of trouble with drink and drugs - by the time he was preparing to face Manny Pacquiao in 2009. That would end in brutal defeat.

Hatton later admitted that result hastened the spiral downwards. Suicidal thoughts and addiction were hard to deal with. Yet he remained a doting dad to Campbell, who was later joined by Millie and Fearne. He became a grandfather in 2018 when Campbell's partner had their daughter Lyla.

In 2012, there was a comeback attempt against Vyacheslav Senchenko that ended, somewhat sadly, with a knockout defeat after a body shot. His time in the ring finished with remarkable 45 wins and just three defeats, two of which were against bona fide all-time greats.

Hatton would go on to become a successful trainer, manager and promoter.

He helped guide son Campbell's short professional career along with brother Matthew, who was a world title challenger himself.

Hatton was still working in the sport up until his death at the age of 46. He even had a comeback bout lined up for Dubai in December. It would have been sad to see a great like him returning at such an age - but we would all love to have seen it now rather than take in the sadness of his loss.

Those who followed Hatton throughout his career can still hear the chant that echoed around the Manchester Arena and the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

There is, and there will always be, only one Ricky Hatton.