Do you want Pacquiao to fight Ricky Hatton?

There has been talk that Britain’s premier boxer, Ricky “Hitman” Hatton (43-1-0, 31 KOs) is being groomed to fight Filipino boxing icon Manny Pacquiao late this year.  This is going to be a very, very big fight for both men and is going to generate a lot of PPV buys here and abroad.  Both boxers have gained international prominence in the fight business with Hatton solidifying it recently with a showdown with the world’s best boxer, Floyd Mayweather Jr.

It will be a fight of the year candidate for sure but is this really the correct fight path for Manny? Let me just offer my two centavos’ worth here. Hatton will not be an easy fight for Manny. Hatton has fought at 140 lbs in almost all of his fights. Manny is currently at 130 and to jump to 10 more pounds by the end of the year may be too much to ask from him.  We all know the Pinoy has a good chin but Manny has never felt the punch of a legitimate light welterweight like Hatton. Thinking of him receiving good shots from Hatton makes me cringe. You can also look at it from Hatton’s perspective. Hatton has been taking punches from men his size and lost only once. Manny is the strongest super featherweight in the world but there’s a limit to his power when he goes on to a different weight class. Now I don’t want to sound like I don’t believe in Manny’s capabilities as a boxer. I’m just saying that if he wants to fight Hatton, next year might be the time to do it. Let him play around in the lightweight division and fight Juan and David Diaz first. Let’s not rush things. Manny is our national treasure and to ask him too much in too little time is not the way to do it.