RICKY HATTON charge Brad ‘Sting’ Rea scored a sensational round-one knockout win on Saturday.
The middleweight powerhouse detonated a sickening left uppercut on Ireland’s Craig McCarthy that collapsed him to the deck, needing ringside oxygen.
The Stretford lad went 12-0 – on the Amir Khan vs Kell Brook undercard – with the ruthlessly rapid KO but he also looked relieved when McCarthy got back to his feet having recovered.
The heavy-handed ace beamed: “It’s one of the best day of my life.
“I know that I’m capable of that. I hit hard – this was a message to the other middleweights.
“Craig is a good fighter, I was pleased he took the fight because it would help me show how good I am.
“I know I have that power but a lot of work goes into making sure the shots land.
“And the most important thing, after the victory, is that Craig gets up and goes home safe to his family.
@font-face{font-family:’The Sun’;src:url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Regular.woff2’) format(‘woff2’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Regular.woff’) format(‘woff’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Regular.ttf’) format(‘truetype’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Regular.svg#’) format(‘svg’);font-style:normal;font-weight:400;font-display:swap;}@font-face{font-family:’The Sun’;src:url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Medium.woff2’) format(‘woff2’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Medium.woff’) format(‘woff’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Medium.ttf’) format(‘truetype’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Medium.svg#’) format(‘svg’);font-style:normal;font-weight:500;font-display:swap;}@font-face{font-family:’The Sun’;src:url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-HeavyNarrow.woff2’) format(‘woff2’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-HeavyNarrow.woff’) format(‘woff’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-HeavyNarrow.ttf’) format(‘truetype’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-HeavyNarrow.svg#’) format(‘svg’);font-style:normal;font-weight:400;font-stretch:semi-condensed;font-display:swap;}@font-face{font-family:’The Sun’;src:url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Bold.woff2’) format(‘woff2’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Bold.woff’) format(‘woff’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Bold.ttf’) format(‘truetype’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-Bold.svg#’) format(‘svg’);font-style:normal;font-weight:700;font-stretch:normal;font-display:swap;}@font-face{font-family:’The Sun’;src:url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-HeavyNarrow.woff2’) format(‘woff2’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-HeavyNarrow.woff’) format(‘woff’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-HeavyNarrow.ttf’) format(‘truetype’),url(‘/assets/fonts/the-sun/TheSun-HeavyNarrow.svg#’) format(‘svg’);font-style:normal;font-weight:700;font-stretch:condensed;font-display:swap;}.css-qu9fel{border-top:1px solid #dcdddd;}.css-b9nmbi{margin-bottom:16px;border-top:1px solid #dcdddd;}
Most read in Boxing
.css-1gojmfd{margin-bottom:16px;}
“I just want more of these potential hard fights and opponents so I can move up the rankings and start targeting titles.”
Orthodox fighter Rea landed a handful of brutal rights in the second minute of the fight.
BETTING SPECIAL – GET KHAN AT HUGE 40/1 OR BROOK AT 30/1 FOR BOXING SHOWDOWN
But it was the left-handed shot he pivoted into with full force that robbed McCarthy of his senses.
With British ring legend Hatton beaming in his corner, Rea put on a brief but faultless performance to thrill his local crowd.
After strutting to the ring to Hatton’s favourite local band – Oasis – he boxed like a Rock-n-Roll star in a cracking cameo appearance.
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk