Three months of hard slog, body-belts and eating clean
Hatton's nutritionist and trainer tell Sachin Nakrani how welterweight has got in shape for the fight of his life
Week 1 (Sept 17-23)
The nutritionist Kerry Kayes begins working with Ricky Hatton during a five-city promotional tour for the fight, the priority being to shed the weight put on between fights.
"Ricky was 35 to 40lb over his fighting weight [147lb]; we were in the gym at 6am every other day shedding that load," said Kayes. This was done by a light jog of five miles on the treadmill and lifting weights. Kayes, a former bodybuilding champion, also provides him with controlled supplements.
"They give Ricky the nutrients he needs to train, not feel hungry and, most important, not put on weight," Kayes said. "The supplements Ricky was taking contained 42 grammes of protein in 270 calories. If you tried to get 42 grammes of protein from a regular meal, such as aeroplane and hotel food, it would be 1,000 calories and that is no good, we needed to shift weight off Ricky." Hatton returns from the tour 10lb lighter.
Week 2 (Sept 24-30)
Hatton starts work with Billy "The Preacher" Graham at his Betta Bodies gym in Denton, Manchester. From this point, Hatton is in the gym five days a week. The first week is spent working with the bar-bag. Hatton has to leap over a metal bar, approximately 3ft high, and hit a punch bag on the other side.
"We start with six repetitions at a time and then build up to 15," Graham said. "It's about working on Ricky's reactions and punching while also developing his fitness, which is still important at this stage."
Kayes maintained a key role. "Ricky can eat anything he wants as long as it's clean: rice, potatoes, white meat, vegetables," he explained.
Because he has moved up to welterweight for this fight, supplements play a more significant part than usual. "We have an extra 7lb to play with and I want to turn that into as much muscle as possible," said Kayes. "I've been giving him Creatine E2. It drives straight into the muscle and gives the athlete more energy and power."
Week 3 (Oct 1-7)
Hatton gets into the ring and starts "light-touch work" with Graham, sparring at a slow pace with the emphasis on finding his range. "Floyd Mayweather is a defensive genius, even pinning him up against the ropes is no guarantee of success," said Graham. "But Ricky is a master at opening up fighters and we've spent a lot of time working on that, getting through a defence and doing some serious damage in tight corners."
Weeks 4-10 (Oct 8-Nov 25)
The most important aspect of Hatton's training regime is introduced - the body-belt, a heavy, rounded, padded sack which Graham straps on and Hatton punches, designed to hone his fighting qualities: body-punching and sheer relentlessness.
"Ricky has to chase me around the ring and go as hard as possible, it's what he enjoys doing the most," Graham said. They work with the body-belt five days a week and increase the rounds steadily from four to six to eight to 10 to 12. "Me and Ricky have been going through this same routine for years, ever since he had his junior belts. We know exactly what we need to do and how to do it."
Hatton is also running at weekends, although Graham puts no emphasis on him doing so. Indeed, the 50-year-old would rather Hatton rest on his days off and stresses recovery and relaxation during preparation.
"Sleep is massively important. I allow Ricky to sleep for as long as his body needs to, that is why our daily session starts at 12.30pm," Graham said. "There are some coaches who get their fighters up at the crack of dawn and make them eat raw eggs. In my opinion, that is a load of old-school bollocks. Where is the good in having a fighter sparring in the dark when he is tired? It's pointless."
Weeks 11-12 (Nov 26-Dec 8)
"All we need is a ring, a body-belt and some sparring partners," said Graham of their gym in Las Vegas. Hatton's younger brother Matthew, a professional fighter himself, is used as a sparring partner.
A week before the fight, Graham increases the body-bag rounds to 15. Away from the gym he will pore over DVDs of Mayweather's fights. "I'll make sure I know Floyd inside out, I'll make sure I know Floyd better than he knows himself," Graham said.
Kayes makes sure Hatton is eating well, taking his supplements and is in no danger of failing the weigh-in, his greatest fear. "Once the weigh-in is done, he can relax and have a right good fill - the food still has to be clean, though."
guardian
