Written by Scott Swerbinsky

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Well, so much for this one being a fight of the year candidate. Jose Luis Castillo was outclassed, outboxed, and put out of his misery in the fourth round by a vicious body shot from the now 43-0 Ricky "The Hitman" Hatton. My cuz recaps the fight, and talks about the future for Hatton ... which could include a mega-showdown with Miguel Cotto or Floyd Mayweather Jr.

So much for fight of the year candidate. It appears as if another boxing warrior has hung on too long.

Last night at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas, Ricky Hatton beat up an old and worn down Jose Luis Castillo. "The Hitman" landed a solid body shot in the 4th round to make Castillo quit. This was after Castillo looked ready to pack it in at the start of the 2nd round. He cleary wasn't the fighter we have seen many times before.

Both fighters came out with guns blazing and it was evident about a minute into the fight that Castillo was going to be in for a short night. Hatton was ten times quicker and landed good shots as soon as the opening bell sounded. They were both using their dirty tactics, holding and punching behind the head. Castillo even lost a point for low blows and didn't seem to care or mind. Hatton simply wore him down and Castillo's gas tank was running on fumes early on.

Once again it was hard to tell just how good Ricky Hatton really is. He was sharp with his punches but also took some pretty decent shots and his face was red and puffy and the match didn't last very long. Castillo on the other hand looked like a fighter who has fought one too many rounds and hopefully he will walk away.

This seems to be a reoccuring theme in boxing. Too many former champions don't know when to give up the fight game. I know that their competitive nature made them the great boxers that they were, but it really is sad to see some of these guys keep going and ruining their legacies.

Ricky Hatton moved to 43-0 with his victory tonight and is probably in line for a nice big payday soon. Floyd Mayweather and Miguel Cotto have been mentioned as possible opponents for him.

I am still looking forward to seeing Hatton fight someone that can give him a true test. I thought Castillo was that fighter. The only thing that I saw from Jose Luis Castillo was a guy who needs to walk away and hang up the gloves.