MANILA, Philippines – The man who helped train Ricky Hatton against Manny Pacquiao has admitted that it was next to impossible to beat the Filipino champion on that night of May 2 in Las Vegas.
?Manny was awesome on fight night. His speed, timing, combination punching and footwork overall was excellent,? said Lee Beard, Hatton?s assistant trainer, two weeks after the fight.
Beard told boxingscene.com that Pacquiao has tremendously improved over the last 12 months. During that period, Pacquiao fought four times in four different weight classes.
And he won them all, beating Juan Manuel Marquez at 130 lb, David Diaz at 135 lb, Oscar dela Hoya at 147 lb and Hatton at 140 lb. Only Marquez lasted the distance.
?Manny is at the top of his game right now ? physically and mentally,? Beard said, adding that even Floyd Mayweather Jr. might fall into the same predicament against Pacquiao.
While the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight may not take place soon, it?s the fight people are talking about right now, a fight between two pound-for-pound champions.
?Do I think Manny could beat Floyd Jr.? I didn?t think Manny would beat Ricky but he did. I would favor Floyd but Manny could win. Anything can happen in boxing,? he said.
Beard said Pacquiao had relative ease against Hatton when Mayweather Jr. didn?t.
?Nobody has done that to Ricky. What Manny did, even Floyd Jr. in the first five or six rounds had nightmares with Ricky and Ricky was fighting in the same way against Manny.
?But (Hatton) wasn?t unable to get to him as he did with Floyd. Manny was dominant,? said Beard.
So dominant that Hatton, previously undefeated at 140 lb, did not last two rounds. He was floored twice in the first round, and took a crushing blow late in the second to end the fight.
Pacquiao plans to return to the ring by the end of the year and should choose among Miguel Cotto, Shane Mosley, Marquez or Mayweather Jr.
