Ricky Hatton, the People’s Champion whose punch-drunk charisma and unyielding grit lit up Manchester’s rings for a decade, was laid to rest on October 10, 2025, in a funeral that fused the city’s soul with a sorrow so profound it pierced the hearts of thousands lining the streets, but the “strange detail” that sparked the deepest grief was a single, unopened Guinness bottle placed beside his coffin—a “final goodbye” gesture from his parents Carol and Ray that left them in heaving sobs and ex-girlfriend Claire Sweeney collapsing in quiet devastation, a moment that’s etched the “heart’s breaking” into the legacy of a man who was as much barfly as brawler. The service at Manchester Cathedral, attended by 2,000 including Liam Gallagher, Wayne Rooney, Tyson Fury, and Freddie Flintoff, was a tapestry of tributes—Oasis anthems echoing off the spires, a Reliant Robin cortege from Only Fools and Horses leading the way—but the “strange” bottle, a nod to Ricky’s beloved pint, was the quiet thunderclap that cracked the crowd.
Carol, 66, and Ray, 71, the stalwart couple who ran The Queens pub where young Ricky sparred with locals, placed the Guinness as a “last libation,” Ray’s voice breaking in his eulogy: “Our lad loved a pint—now he’s sharing one with the angels.” The “strange detail” wasn’t strange at all—it was sacred, a symbol of the son who “fought for every fan,” but it unleashed a wave of weeping, Carol’s “he was our world” a wail that wailed the weight of losing their “Hyde Hitman” to depression’s dark in September 2025. Claire Sweeney, 54, the Coronation Street star and Ricky’s on-off love since 2004, exited the cathedral veiled in black, her collapse into a friend’s arms a cascade of “we were soulmates,” the bottle a bitter reminder of their “pint and passion” nights.
The “fans in tears”? A torrent of tenderness: The funeral’s “emotional echo”—doves released at The New Inn (Hatton’s parents’ old pub), a pause at Hatton’s Gym—has #RickyRest racking 4.2M posts, “People’s Champ forever!” The “strange” sign? A signpost to the man: Ricky’s 2009 “Hitman” heyday (Tszyu KO, 36-3 record) masked mental maelstroms, his 2024 The Masked Singer stint a “spirit spark,” but the “final goodbye” a farewell to the fighter who “fought till the end.”
This isn’t funeral footnote; it’s a finale of fortitude, Hatton’s “strange” a strange but sacred salute. The detail? Devastating. October 10? Not service – a serenade. Fans? Flooded with faith. The world’s watching – whispering wellness. Ricky’s ring? Ringing, resilient.
