Arturo Gatti shared the ring with many great fighters throughout his career, including Floyd Mayweather and Oscar De La Hoya.
Also known by his moniker ‘Thunder’, Gatti had an outstanding professional career of his own which saw him become a world champion in two weight classes.
Gatti clashed with ‘The Golden Boy’ back in March of 2001, suffering a fifth round stoppage defeat in their non-title bout at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The Canadian great would lock horns with Mayweather four years on from his clash with De La Hoya, suffering a sixth round stoppage defeat to Mayweather to surrender his WBC world super-lightweight title in the process.
Another fighter that Gatti shared the ring with throughout his storied tenure is ‘Irish’ Micky Ward – one of boxing’s greatest ever trilogies.
Speaking after their memorable second encounter, Gatti later told Boston Magazine that Ward was the ‘toughest guy he ever fought’ – a sentiment that will come as no surprise to those who have watched the fights.
“Micky is the toughest guy that I ever fought in my life. There aren’t many guys like him around. The sport needs people like me and Micky Ward. Me and Micky make the sport look good and we make other fighters work harder when they see us fight. Micky is unbelievable – he has the heart of a lion. He is my twin!”
Ward and his punishing body shots got the better of Gatti in their first bout, which took place in Connecticut back in May of 2002, although Gatti would get his revenge in their rematch six months later.
He then repeated that in their third and final encounter just over one year after their first meeting, defeating the American via unanimous decision to put one of boxing’s greatest rivalries to bed.
