When Ricky Hatton turned his thoughts to promoting after Manny Pacquiao pounded him into virtual retirement eyebrows were raised – sharply enough to threaten a cut or two – about the Hitman’s business acumen.
Those eyebrows are lowering, day by day.
Hatton has played an important role in securing his younger brother Matthew his unexpected world title shot in California on March 5.
Family affair: Ricky Hatton (right) with brother Matthew who will take on Saul Alvarez in California
The Hitman teamed up with the Golden Boy, Oscar De La Hoya, to campaign successfully for Matthew’s fight against Mexican boy wonder Saul Alvarez to be for the WBC world light-middleweight title.
Ricky will be at ringside in Anaheim to see if Hatton the younger can pull off a significant upset.
Ironically, this opportunity arose because Pacquiao, the Hitman’s nightmare, relinquished that light-middleweight belt.
A week prior to that – this Saturday night at Bolton’s Reebok Stadium – Hatton Promotions stage a substantial bill headlined by Stephen Foster Jnr’s defence of his European super-featherweight title against Belgian economics graduate Ermano Fagetilli.
Craig Lyon, Joe Murray, Richard Towers and Adam Etches will also be in action. All are part of a stable of promising fighters.
One night in Manchester: Hatton will be there when Khan goes up against McCloskey (right) at the MEN
The Hatton line-up has grown so quickly that Ricky has secured a share in the promotion of Amir Khan’s world light-welterweight title defence against Paul McCloskey at Manchester’s MEN Arena on April 16.
Hatton will provide most of the undercard, thereby bringing several of his prospects to wider public attention, and says of his cluster of British, European and Commonwealth champions: ‘It is only a matter of time before we win our first world title.’
The future – so soon after the self-confessed drugs and drinks scandal – looks bright, whether or not Hatton risks a comeback to the ring.
The doubters should have known better. No matter how many punches he absorbed or bottles of booze he soaked up, the quick-witted Ricky has always been one of the sharpest tacks in the boxing. ………………………………………………………………………………….
Amir Khan is closing in on his next major ambition, that of becoming an undisputed world champion.
If any additional motivation were needed to rebuff unbeaten Ulsterman Paul McCloskey’s April 16 challenge for his WBA light-welterweight title in Manchester, negotiations are well advanced for him to meet his rival world champion, America’s Timothy Bradley, in Las Vegas on July 23. ………………………………………………………………………………….
As if Manny Pacquiao is not enough of a handful, the next Philippine sensation is coming up so fast that his speed is being compared with that of the PacMan himself.
Nonito Donaire, a Filipino-American, blasted his way to the WBC and WBO bantamweight titles with a second-round stoppage of highly-rated Mexican Fernando Montiel in Las Vegas on Saturday.
The blow which floored Montiel was a left-hook, the trade-mark punch with which Pacquiao concussed Ricky Hatton.
