John Hedges vs Pat Brown: A Manchester Showdown
John Hedges walked to the scales in Manchester carrying more than just expectation. Across his chest, in bold print, were the images of the man who helped shape him – Ricky Hatton – and the room felt it before a punch had been thrown.
Hatton, the beloved two-weight world champion turned trainer, died in September 2025 at the age of 46, found at his home in Manchester. His shadow still hangs over British boxing, and on Friday night at New Century Hall, it hung over the weigh-in too.
Hedges, 24 and unbeaten, stood there in Hatton’s city, Hatton’s town, Hatton’s arena of noise. And he was booed.
The Essex cruiserweight, who worked under Hatton after the ‘Hitman’ moved into coaching following his 2012 retirement, had the late great in his corner when he claimed the English cruiserweight title in May 2025. That bond was stitched into his T-shirt and, in a way, into the occasion itself.
As the jeers rolled down from the balconies, Hedges simply pointed to the images on his chest. That was his answer.
“This isn't a hostile atmosphere, this is second nature to me,” he said, brushing off the hostility as if it were little more than background noise. “I've boxed at a high level as an amateur and this is what you get used to.
“Pat knows the crack, he knows where I've been and this is nothing new. I'm blessed to be here but this is nothing new.”
The boos weren’t really about him. They were about the man standing opposite.
Pat Brown, the local favourite with a perfect record of six wins, six knockouts, walked into the hall to a chorus of “Oh, Patrick the Bomber” from a crowd that already sees him as their next big thing. He represented Team GB at the 2024 Olympics and has been gathering momentum ever since, his fanbase swelling with every stoppage and every appearance.
The fight itself has outgrown its original setting. What began as a bout scheduled for Planet Ice in Altrincham now belongs to the far grander Co-op Live arena, such was the demand for tickets. Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn told IFL TV this week that he expects around 5,000 fans to pour in on Saturday night. For a vacant British and Commonwealth cruiserweight title fight, it feels like a statement.
Both men hit the same number on the scales – 14st 3lb (90kg) – but their demeanours told different stories.
Hedges, 12 fights, 12 wins, the away fighter in everything but nationality, played the role of the composed technician who has seen this kind of stage before. Booed, yes, but unshaken.
Brown, the knockout artist with the city at his back, looked like a man tightening the spring. All week he had cut a relaxed figure in front of the cameras, the easy smile of a fighter enjoying his rise. When the weigh-in ended, that switched.
The grin disappeared. The stare hardened.
“This is what I was born to do,” he said, voice low but loaded. “Since I was seven years old and my dad took me into the gym – this is what I was born to do.”
The room believed him. Or at least, his side of it did.
That’s the split that will define Saturday night: the unbeaten technician carrying the memory of a Manchester legend on his chest, against the hometown puncher trying to carve out his own place in the city’s fighting history.
Hatton’s old town loves a brawler with a story. It now has two. Only one walks out with British and Commonwealth gold.
