Hatton urges Mayweather-Pacquiao summit clash

Dubai: British boxer Ricky Hatton has urged Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao to fight just once in an attempt to settle the score of who is the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world.

"Mayweather was possibly one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world. And then Manny came along. But nothing can be drawn between the two till such time both of them come together and fight to decide who is the best among them," Hatton told Gulf News.

"If they do decide to fight, then what a fight that will be."

Hatton, who is in Dubai as a special guest of the PIC deVere Group, has already made inroads as a boxing promoter with three world champions and a couple of Commonwealth champions under his tutelage. And promoting a fight between Mayweather and Pacquiao would be "like a dream come true" for him.

"I am very determined with my new role [as a promoter]. I have been working with some boxers already. And here I must say it is not about style, but it's more about what one can give back to the sport," he said.

Summit

It is ironic that the 31-year-old boxer from Greater Manchester would be keen to promote a Mayweather-Pacquiao summit, given the fact that his two career losses came against these very same men.

In fact, it was after losing his last fight to Pacquiao that Hatton put his boxing career on hold with rumours making the rounds that he may stage a comeback. "No, I have no intentions for a comeback," he asserted.

"Boxing has meant the world to me and it has given me everything that I have and will ever have in the future. I have had so many beautiful moments due to my career in boxing and there have been so many nice places that I have been to as a boxer," Hatton said.

"Boxing started off as a habit and it ended up giving me some money and making me a little bit of a better person," Hatton said. "But I don't think I will have a fight again," he added.

However, on second thoughts he wavered a bit. "But you can never say never as I have not announced officially that I won't be boxing. At the moment I don't have any fire in the belly for a fight or to get myself to a gym," he smiled.

"But it has been only 13 months [since the last fight] and I am only 31, so never count me out," Hatton beamed.