“I don’t forget, you know what I mean?” Rea said, discussing the passage of time since the beloved Hatton passed. “But it’s out of the mind at some points. And then, because he was this figure where he was everywhere, and so many people have got attachments to him and memories of him… And I’m friends with a lot of his friends now and it’s hard to escape. It is hard to escape. But especially now, with the fight coming up again and it is being brought up, it’s tough. But, you know, I wanted to go out there with him in the fight [against Arthur] and try and do him proud. And I think I would have. I think, putting the jokes aside, he would have been proud of me. But he still would have had a few jibs afterwards about getting beat by a [Manchester] United fan.”
Initially, of course, Rea took the loss hard. He’s a competitor and he’d worked hard. But now he has the chance to put any perceived wrongs right.
He also wants to deliver for those who pay to watch him.
