Pacquiao-Hatton Could Be PPV Boxing’s Next Big Bout
Combatants Could Meet In May 2 Match
By R. Thomas Umstead -- Multichannel News, 12/19/2008 3:07:00 AM MT
Barely two weeks removed from his dominating performance over Oscar De La Hoya lightweight boxing champion Manny Pacquiao is already looking at his next big pay-per-view payday.
Pacquiao is in talks with former super lightweight champion Ricky Hatton to meet in a May 2 pay-per-view fight, according to ESPN. The fight, if it happens, could set the stage for a mega bout between Pacquiao and former welterweight champion Floyd Mayweather sometime next fall. Mayweather, who announced his retirement last summer, has drawn more than 3 million PPV buys in his last two fights in 2006 against Hatton (800,000 buys) and De La Hoya (2.4 million).
HBO senior vice president of sports operations Mark Taffet said that while the network is looking to stage a May 2 Pacquiao fight, any speculation on potential opponents is “premature.”
