Ricky Hatton has called on boxing authorities to step in and stop Wladimir Klitschko potentially fighting Tyson Fury.
Talk of the Ukrainian making a sensational return to the sport, eight years on from his retirement, has ramped up in recent times.
Fury is currently licking his wounds and spending time with his family after losing to Oleksandr Usyk in December.
That defeat came after he'd previously crashed to defeat against the 37-year-old in May, with Fury unable to avenge that setback last month.
Boxing news: Ricky Hatton feels authorities should stop in amid talk Wladimir Klitschko will come out of retirement to face Tyson Fury
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In the short time since, rumours have surfaced suggesting Fury could face Klitschko for a second time - a decade on from their first bout.
The Briton came out on top in 2015 in what still stands as one of the biggest victories of his career.
But Hatton, speaking to Vegas Insider, has now expressed a belief that boxing chiefs should step in to stop the rematch from happening.
The former boxer also compared a potential rematch to the recent showdown between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul, with the latter cruising to victory over a man twice his age.
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"George Foreman did it and made a comeback to win the world title at 45 years old," said Hatton.
"The one thing about the Klitschko brothers is that they were both pure athletes and pure professionals. Ricky Hatton wasn’t but they lived the life and looked after their bodies.
"You only have to look at them. I haven’t seen either for a while, but I bet they both look solid as a rock.
"If anybody can get away with it… he has the height, the reach, and has looked after his body.
"But I’m not sure I would like to see Wladimir in the ring with a young, hungry fighter in the form of his life like Daniel Dubois.
"Whether it’s Wladimir, Anthony Joshua, or Tyson Fury, these are people I admire and with me being a boxing trainer and former world champion, I am a boxing fan and always have been since being young, but I’ve had a few tough times when I’ve seen people I like get beat and knocked out.
"He’ll go through all the tests to see if he is fit enough and all of the scans and I have no doubt he’ll be in great shape, but I wonder when you see the Mike Tyson vs Jake Paul fight and Evander Holyfield fighting, is this good for boxing?
"Do we need someone in boxing or an organisation to take it out of the boxer’s hands and say ‘you’re too past it Mike’ or ‘you’ve had your day Wladimir, we’re thinking of you and your health’.
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"We are fighters so what are we going to say, no?"
One person who disagrees with Hatton is Eddie Hearn, however.
Speaking recently to Betfred, the boxing promoter said that Klitschko had earned the right to decide whether to return to boxing or not.
And Hearn expressed a belief that the Ukrainian could still compete with the best, having narrowly lost to Anthony Joshua in 2017.
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“Wladimir’s bright enough to make his own decision," he said.
"I think he’s had a long time out of the ring since the Anthony Joshua fight, but he’s kept himself in tremendous physical condition.
"It wasn’t as if Wladimir looked terrible in that fight. He almost beat AJ.
"However, I do believe it would be difficult to come back, but he’s a very strong man, a great man and whatever decision he makes, I’m sure it’ll be the right one for him.”
