We noted during Saturday night's fight between Floyd Mayweather and Ricky Hatton that some of the British fans who had made the trip to Las Vegas to cheer on their countryman booed "The Star-Spangled Banner" when it was sung before the fight.
But Hatton himself wants it known that he didn't condone it. In a column for The Times of London headlined, "Boos for American National Anthem Put British Fans to Shame," Hatton is quoted as saying, "I was in the changing-room when the anthems were sung, but if that's what happened, I'm disappointed."
The paper also quotes one Brit who said, "Unfortunately, the English fans were a complete embarrassment."
For the most part, the Hatton fans were great: Their singing and cheering lent a type of energy to the event that I've never before seen at a boxing match. But booing the anthem was classless, and Hatton is right to be disappointed.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
12-10-2007 @ 3:06PM
Dan Daoust said...
Is this where we point out that Yankee fans have been known to boo "O Canada" on a not-infrequent basis? Not that you're condoning that either, but we shouldn't pretend that a bunch of British goons came over here and did something utterly unheard of on these shores.
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12-10-2007 @ 5:50PM
Budo said...
Truly sad. I am certain that Hatton was upset. Fun is one thing, respect is another.
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12-10-2007 @ 3:20PM
swervzlaw said...
I wonder if the British were booing our national anthem during WWII
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12-10-2007 @ 6:05PM
randy said...
What's to expect from those people. Drunken British soccer fans in Las Vegas! Are you kidding me that this is a story. Ask fans from around the rest of the world about these losers.
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12-17-2007 @ 1:30PM
Linda said...
In response to the post 12/10 by Dan Daoust: Booing of any national anthem seems pretty ugly behavior to me -- regardless of the nationality of the people booing. Although I'm an American, I'm sick of hearing the chants of "USA, USA, USA!" also. I wish ALL sports fans (especially Americans) would behave more like the Japanese fans. In watching Pride fighting, which originated from Japan, I've always been impressed with the Japanese fan's appreciation of fighters of other nationalities. I'm ashamed by the open displays of hostility towards athletes from other countries by my fellow Americans, and I was shocked by the Brits booing of our national anthem before the fight. To quote Rodney King: CAN'T WE ALL JUST GET ALONG!
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