Matthew Hatton, the younger brother of boxing legend Ricky Hatton, has confessed that he was “always worried” about his older sibling’s mental health. Matthew, 44, has spoken out for the first time since the devastating news of Ricky’s death was confirmed last month.
Ricky, aged 46, was discovered dead at his home in Hyde, Greater Manchester, on September 14 by his manager and close friend Paul Speak. The passing of the retired British boxer sent shockwaves throughout the sporting world and beyond, due to his immense popularity and legendary status within the sport.
Hatton was laid to rest earlier this month, and it was revealed last week by a coroner that he was found hanged at his residence. A full inquest is scheduled for March 20, 2026.
Speak had arrived at Hatton’s home on the day of his death to accompany him to Dubai for a press conference announcing his comeback fight.
Matthew, also a former boxer, recently sat down with ITV for his first interview since his brother’s tragic passing. He admitted that while he was always concerned about Ricky due to his previous struggles with mental health, he never believed that Ricky would take his own life.
He said: “I don’t think we ever did [think he would take his own life]. I’ll be honest, I’ve always worried. I spoke with my partner all the time [about him] and we did worry a lot about Richard, obviously [with him] doing a lot of interviews and stuff like that.
“I’d listen and I was never really convinced by what he was saying. A lot of the time he was speaking about things that had happened years ago and he didn’t really seem to have a purpose now or a vision for the future. That always worried me.
“But genuinely, this year is undoubtedly the best he’s ever been by a long, long way because he had his problems since he stopped boxing. It really was a shock and we didn’t expect that at all.”
When asked whether Ricky ever contacted him directly, Matthew revealed: “Not really. He was always so busy, he was everywhere. I know he was speaking to professionals on a regular basis and that made me a little bit easier about the whole thing.”
Hatton had been scheduled to make his comeback to the ring for the first time since 2012, facing Eisa Al Dah on December 2 in Dubai.
The Manchester legend is now expected to be substituted by Kell Brook for the contest, which has been rescheduled for February 13.
Hatton had frequently discussed his mental health struggles publicly, working to eliminate the shame surrounding men showing emotion rather than keeping feelings bottled up.
Matthew continued: “In reality I think no [I haven’t processed what’s happened]. At first I was totally shocked and for the first couple of weeks I went to see my mum and dad, I went to see [Hatton’s son] Campbell, I just couldn’t answer my phone or speak to people.
“It felt like a bad dream. Has it hit me yet fully? I don’t know, probably not.”