Andrew Flintoff says chat with Ricky Hatton made him feel ‘obliged’ to open up

Ex-Top Gear presenter and former cricketer Andrew “Freddie” Flintoff has said a conversation with late boxer Ricky Hatton made him feel “obliged” to open up about his mental health struggles.

Former world welterweight champion Hatton died aged 46, after he was found hanged at his home in Hyde on September 14, Stockport Coroner’s Court was told on Thursday.

Flintoff, who has spoken openly about his struggles since he was taken to hospital with facial and rib injuries following a crash at the Top Gear test track in Surrey in December 2022, said he last met Hatton by chance on a train to Manchester.

Speaking about Hatton, he told Piers Morgan’s Uncensored YouTube show: “He’s charming, he’s funny, our careers run parallel with each other, at the height at the same time…

“(We) had nights out in the Press Club in Manchester, we done karaoke together, and I never knew all these things that he were struggling with ’til we sat down and we started talking, obviously he was so honest about what he’d been going through and how he felt.

“And then as he was talking, I was relating to it, I felt right, that’s what I’ve been like, and then it just turned into a chat between two blokes, being really honest, and I suppose that documentary (Disney+’s Flintoff) changed.

“I wasn’t going to give as much away about myself but then felt obliged to actually if he’s doing this.”

Flintoff said there was “almost a guilt” over Hatton’s death, and said he was realising his struggles had “happened to more and more people”, referencing late former cricketer Graham Thorpe who took his own life last year aged 55.

He added: “I think it’s like all these things, when something like that happens and you speak and everyone says, ‘he seemed fine’, ‘he seemed all right’, ‘he (Hatton) was looking forward to fighting in the next few weeks out in Dubai’.”

Since his crash, Flintoff has returned to cricket as head coach of The Hundred team Northern Superchargers, a role he left earlier this month.

He has also returned to TV to host Freddie Flintoff’s Field Of Dreams: Ultimate Test, which sees him attempt to build new cricket teams from teenagers who have limited experience of the game.

Following the incident, the BBC “rested” Top Gear for the foreseeable future in 2023 after reaching a financial settlement with Flintoff, an agreement reportedly worth around £9 million.