Hatton splits with trainer of 11 years

Updated 11.14 Tue Jul 29 2008

Keywords: Ojay Abrahams, Billy Graham, Lee Beard, Ricky Hatton, Paulie Malignaggi

Ricky Hatton will head into his world title clash against Paulie Malignaggi without trainer Billy Graham in his corner after it was confirmed that their 11-year partnership has come to an end.

Graham has ended months of speculation about his future by announcing he will retire from the sport following one final job in the corner of journeyman Ojay Abrahams in Watford.

Graham has ended months of speculation about his future by announcing he will retire from the sport following one final job in the corner of journeyman Ojay Abrahams in Watford

Hatton's father Ray was quick to pay tribute to Graham, who took Hatton under his wing and into his Salford gym as a teenager and moulded him into one of the finest fighters Britain has ever produced.

He said: "Ricky and Billy had a meeting yesterday in which Billy admitted he was not going any further - it was quite emotional because they have been together for so long.

"It's a sad day - Billy will always be remembered as one of the world's great trainers and to go out after a win in front of 58,000 people in Manchester will be a fitting end to his career.

"But everybody knew Billy had been struggling in recent years with a few health problems and it was becoming increasingly painful for him to train Ricky."

He added: "We knew the bombshell was coming and it was just a question of when."

Hatton is now likely to be trained by Graham's assistant Lee Beard for his fight against Malignaggi.