Ricky Hatton: “I want to take that title off him – and I know I can”

When Ricky Hatton steps into the ring on May 2 to face Manny Pacquiao, he will get the chance, once again, to beat a man considered by many to be the best pound for pound fighter in the world. After failing to derail Floyd Mayweather Jnr. from a similar position, the Manchester ‘Hitman’ is not going to get many more chances to test himself against the world’s best. It is an opportunity that Hatton knows he must take, and prove to the world his worth, and undeniably silence those who doubt his ability on the big stage.
“I want to take that title off him – and I know I can. Once I become the best pound-for-pound fighter, how much higher can I go? Once you have climbed Everest, where do you go next? It is the ultimate. You can’t look past someone like Manny Pacquiao. For God’s sake, he’s the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world. But if I was fortunate enough to win, which I genuinely believe I can do, I will have achieved my ultimate goal,” Hatton told The Daily Star.
“Beating him would really fulfill an ambition of mine. Ever since I started out in boxing I have dreamt of being the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world. I am now the best in my division so to be regarded as the best in the world in all divisions would be fantastic – utterly fantastic.”
“I thought my chances of becoming the pound-for-pound king had gone after my performance in the Juan Lazcano fight last year,” He added. “I thought to myself, ‘Hey you, you’re not performing any more. Has it caught up with you – the going up and down in weight, a few too many pints and the hard fights and stuff like that?’ I thought maybe it had. But against Paulie Malignaggi in my last fight, I felt I redeemed myself. It wasn’t just the performance but my performance against the style of opponent which made it all the more impressive.”
While Hatton is adament he is not looking past Manny Pacquiao, he is constantly being asked about whether or not a rematch with Floyd Mayweather Jnr. is a possibility down the line. It would appear inevitable, should he find a way to defeat Pacquaio, that Mayweather will be next for Hatton, if a deal can be done and Mayweather decides to return from his boxing exile.
“The only thing left to do would be to have another crack at Floyd Mayweather Jr. I keep going on about how I was so hard done to by the referee, so let’s find out if it was the ref or if he was really that good. If I beat Pacquiao, it will give me more pull to say, ‘Come over here and fight me, Floyd. You won over there – now you come over here.’ I owe it to myself to try and put the record straight before I hang my gloves up. I don’t want to retire until I have another crack at him.

Source: the-fight-site.com