On 5 June 2005 Hatton beat Kostya Tszyu, then widely regarded as one of the top pound-for-pound boxers in the world by a technical knockout after the Australian failed to answer the bell for the 12th round. Hatton was a heavy underdog for this fight, and the victory announced his entry to the upper echelons of the world boxing scene. Prior to the fight the majority of boxing critics had given Hatton little or no chance and this victory was regarded as one of the best victories by an English boxer in the last 20 years. On 26 November 2005 Hatton won the WBA title when he defeated Carlos Maussa in the ninth round of a unification bout. In December, Hatton was named the 2005 Ring Magazine Fighter of the Year.[9]
Hatton relinquished his IBF belt on 29 March, 2006 after refusing to fulfil a mandatory defence against number one contender Naoufel Ben Rabah, because he intended to move up to the welterweight class. Hatton signed a three fight contract with Dennis Hobson's fight academy after splitting from long time promoter Frank Warren. The three fights would take place in the United States.
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