Ricky Hatton will beat Manny Pacquiao.

[scottydontdo]

Hatton has lost 1 fight....Pacman has lost 3 and drawn 2 hmmm!

Pacman recently beat DLH who has not been down to 147 for how long..!

[ACHlLLES]

Ricky Hatton is not a good boxer, he is a good brawler though. So, I don't know how a good brawler is suppose to be a great boxer like Manny.

[fcastro1]

Hatton has lost 1 fight....Pacman has lost 3 and drawn 2 hmmm!

Pacman recently beat DLH who has not been down to 147 for how long..!

you cant compare boxers through their fighting records because has pac a better resume. has fought better comp. has been a champ since 19. 5 weight champ first asian p4p fighter etc.

[margacheeto]

Hatton has lost 1 fight....Pacman has lost 3 and drawn 2 hmmm!

Pacman recently beat DLH who has not been down to 147 for how long..!

good to see the idiot brit spam has started back up

[BlackHat]

Calling it right now, it will be the upset of 2009.

I know Hatton struggles with southpaws, is easy to hit at times due to being overly ambitious, and seems susceptable to being rocked more than a rocking chair, but hey call me crazy.

I think a lot of people are really underestimating Ricky Hatton, and really overrating Pacquiao's victory over Oscar. Don't get me wrong, I think it was a great win for Manny, he was absolutely sensational, it just would of been nice to see a fresh Oscar in there. Weight drained or not, it's very apparent Oscar has officially gotten old. It's unfortunate, but sometimes fighters get old overnight, it's happened to countless of fighters. Although past his prime, against Mayweather, Mayorga, etc, Oscar still had that spark in his step and was still a very formible opponent for everyone. In 2006, 2007, Oscar was easily the best at 154. He was undoubtedly better than Karmazin, Ouma or Spinks (the top dogs at 154 at the time). In the Pacquiao fight it was blatently apparent Oscar no longer had that spark in his step.

Anyway, back to the topic at hand.

I think Hatton's going to have to give the performance of his life, he's going to have to give it everything he's got, commiting 120% of himself, and if he does that, I can assure you, that Hatton is a very live underdog. What people forget is that Hatton very fast on his feet, and Manny doesn't fight going backwards.

If Ricky is able with the new and improved head movement / defense contingent on Mr. Mayweather's training, I think he will be able to get on the inside often enough against Manny to really score some points. Despite looking good at 147, I really don't think Manny will be able to out muscle Hatton on the inside. In fact, I think Hatton is so much bigger and bulkier that he will be able to dominate Manny on the inside.

An interesting thing to note is that there seems to be a lot of doubt thrown around about both Hatton's and Manny's ability to take a punch. Fans in favour of a Hatton victory tend to scrutinize that Manny really hasn't been chin tested at these weight-classes yet. I whole heartedly agree. This is the fight that will test it. It would be extremely ignorant and overly optimistic if this wasn't a major concern for Pacquiao fans. Yes Manny has improved his defense over the past few years, he seems to have better lateral and head movement than he use to. He definitely keeps his hands higher than he use to at times. However Ricky is awkward, unusually fast, deceptive and creative in the ring. He's been able to hit, and hit hard everyone he's fought, except Mayweather. Defensively, Pacquiao isn't anywhere close to Floyd. I assure you, Ricky Hatton will hit Manny Pacquiao

To be fair to my objectivism however, it would be foolish to conclude that Hatton's chin shouldn't be a major concern of mine, or fans alike as well. Hatton is going to be hit, undoubtedly. He will eat some hard straight left hands on May 2nd. The question is, how will he handle it? Although I believe Manny has the ability and the power to KO Hatton, I think it can only be done in combinations as opposed to a single punch. Though still a good puncher, Manny has definitely lost his 1 KO power, and his fists seem to have lost their heaviness at these higher weight-classes. Sure he gave Oscar a black eye, but my 5 year old neice could've gave Oscar a black eye with the amount of punches he got hit with. Oscar didn't seem bothered by the actual power thrown behind those straight lefts (the hardest punches landed in the fight). With Hatton's quick and deceptive foot speed, and with his improved, although still not great defense, and awkward style, I really don't think he's going to be hit as often as some fans on this website think he is.

A lot of Pacquiao fans need to acknowledge that this fight isn't going to be fought at range will Pacquiao mercfully picks Hatton apart with combination punching, like he did with a helpless, stagnant Oscar. Hatton will dart in and eat some punches in the process, but he will either force Manny to fight backwards and off his backfoot (at least we can all agree that Manny isn't at his best when fighting backwards), or he will be in Manny's chest wrestling, and smothering him all night. What I found incredulous about the Mayweather fight was how Floyd was able hold is own (and more) against Hatton on the inside. He was able to do this, because I think Floyd is a lot stronger than people give him credit for. Floyd was strong enough to wrestle with Hatton, and at times when he wanted, to push him off to create a little distance to land short punches on the inside. I don't think Pacquiao will be able to do the same, I just don't think he's naturally big or strong enough to do so, and it's because of that I think Hatton will be able for the most part, dictate the pace AND the range of which the fight is fought at.

What makes this fight so intriguing is how will Manny be able to handle that type of pressure against someone so much stronger than he is, when he's been the one exerting the pressure his entire career.

What you failed to acknowledged is that Pac will never fight backwards but with side to side movement. He will never let Ricky put him in a cornered position or against the rope, no one has ever done that and I doubt Ricky can. Every time Ricky charges, Pac will give him either a lead straight left, a right hook or a combination of both then move sidewards.

If Hatton can solve Pac's side to side movement, then he has a lot of chance beating Pacquiao. He should always be 1 move ahead of Manny, but the problem is that Pac is very unpredictable with his moves and Ricky ain't faster than Pac.

I am giving Ricky 20% chance of winning against Manny.

[S A M U R A I]

Hatton has lost 1 fight....Pacman has lost 3 and drawn 2 hmmm!

Pacman recently beat DLH who has not been down to 147 for how long..!

Yes, and when has Pac been at 147? Once. Pac-DLH was more than a fair fight.

As for his early losses, he's obviously learned from those and come back stronger. Hasn't been knocked out in 10 years. This guy is P4P #1 for a good reason. His last loss was to a superb boxer Erik Morales. If he loses, it's always gonna be to guys with slick skills. Hatton isn't slick. Marquez is slick. Morales was slick. In the first Marquez fight, one judge made a mistake in scoring the first round 10-7 rather than 10-6. That's why he has a draw against Marquez.

Look at the facts. You can't just say "Pac lost 3 and drew 2, and Ricky lost only once" without considering everything. I won't make excuses, a loss is a loss, but here are some things to chew on:

Ricky hasn't faced tougher competition than Pacquiao. He lost when he stepped up to elite level, which he's about to do again.

Pac lost a tight decision to Morales. Lost two fights in his early days which were a long time ago.

Drew with Marquez due to a mistake in the scoring. It should be a UD.

Pac had more fights and took more risks.

Overall, Pacquiao is on another level than Hatton. I'm not counting Ricky out, and if he wins he gets maximum respect from me, but I don't see it happening.



| |

[burnoksan]

Here's the latest news article from the Philippines on the fight:



Filipino boxing superstar Manny Pacquiao said he has learned a lot from the long and arduous negotiation for his “superfight” with Britain’s boxing favorite Ricky Hatton.

He said the negotiating process that eventually ended to a signed fight contract with Hatton put Team Pacquiao to the test.

“Itong huling linggong nagdaan ay naging isang malaking pagsubok sa mga miyembro ng aking koponan (This last week has tested members of my team),” Pacquiao said in his PhilBoxing.com column “Kumbinasyon”.

Pacquiao also said the negotiations made him learn more about the people around him and his career.

The world's pound-for-pound king said he could not blame some quarters for refusing to recognize and respect his achievements in boxing.

He cited the outburst made by Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions (GBP), during the middle of the Hatton negotiations.

Schaefer was earlier reported to have been "disgusted" over Pacquiao’s refusal to agree with their 52-48 offer to fight Hatton. He also described the Filipino boxer as "a spoiled young kid who doesn't know how to behave."

“Hindi rin natin siya masisisi. Dalawang beses kong tinalo si Marco Antonio Barrera, tinalo ko rin si Juan Manuel Marquez… At higit sa lahat, si [Oscar] de la Hoya ay natalo natin noong isang taon,” said Pacquiao.

(I can’t blame him. I beat Marco Antonio Barrera twice, I also defeated Juan Manuel Marquez… Most of all I also beat de la Hoya).

Pacquiao said that the boxers he mentioned are among GBP’s best talents.

He, however, said Schaefer’s outburst has no place on the negotiating table.

“Naging personal ang kanyang galit at dinadala niya ito sa gitna ng negosasyon, isang bagay na hindi dapat humantong sa ganoong mga usapin (His anger has become personal and he has brought this at the middle of the negotiations, which is improper in such talks),” he said.

Water under the bridge
Now that the contract has been settled, Pacquiao said Schaefer’s statement is already “water under the bridge.”

“Gusto ko na ring tapusin ang hidwaan na iyan dahil walang maidudulot na mabuti ang pag-aalitan (I’d like to end that dispute because it will only lead to nowhere),” he said.

He said he can’t wait to go back to training again to prepare against Hatton.

Pacquiao said he will start training with boxing Hall-of-Famer coach Freddie Roach in March after the fight’s scheduled press tour.

“Hindi ako pwedeng magkumpiyansa kay Hatton, suntok siya ng suntok (I can’t underestimate Hatton, he throws a lot of punches),” he said.

Fight fans are expecting the Hatton camp to confirm the fight in the United Kingdom Monday (Tuesday in Manila). With Dyan Castillejo, ABS-CBN News

as of 01/27/2009 4:30 PM

[DrewWoodside]

For some weird reason i think Hatton will be the favorite!

he may win the fight but he won't be the favorite going in.

[Jeups]

Ill defo be cheering Pacmans corner but by no means do i expect this to be an easy fight. Paco needs to fight cleverly and not get bogged down trading punches with Hitman. If he fights like he did against DLH, fast accurate punches and not getting bogged down, he should win. If he fights Rickys fight he will run into problems, no doubt!

Still Pacman K0/TKO in the 9th/10th

[DrewWoodside]

I think hatton is gonna win to......

It took what 11 rounds to beat Malinaggi? A featherfisted fighter using only one hand? He couldn't have thrown more than 15 right hands. Fighting pacman is going to be a whole different universe. This is gonna be a great fight.