Manny Pacquiao is the IBO and The Ring light welterweight champion of the world. Tonight, Manny Pacquiao staked his claim to the pound-for-pound title.
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Round 2: Hatton fires a left hand that lands. The pace is frantic. Manny fires a 1-2 up the middle. Manny fires another looping right hook upstairs. Manny staggers Hatton with a left. Hatton lands a left to the body. Bayless separates the fighters as they tussle in tight. Hatton holds and hits. Manny scores with another left hook. Manny digs to the body. Manny fires an overhand left to Hatton’s kisser and down goes Hatton. Fight over!
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Round 1: Manny fires right hook and lands flush to Hattons face. Manny fires a right hook, and another. Hatton bull rushes Manny to the ropes. Hatton doesn’t see the punches coming. A Manny right hook drops Hatton. Hatton gets to his feet and bam, down goes Hatton for a second time. Manny is just too fast! Right hooks. Left hooks. Manny can’t miss. Manny 10-7
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The third man in the ring tonight is Kenny Bayless.

Fight aficionados, were moments away as Michael Buffer is announcing the particulars…

Manny Pacquiao is on his way to the ring. The Filipino fans go crazy. Pacquiao says a prayer in the red corner and is ready to war.

Ricky Hatton has made his way to the ring. He entered to a song about himself…

The Manny Pacquiao v. Ricky Hatton light welterweight super fight is moments away….The British crowd is defeaning in anticipation of the arrival of the combantants.

The sold out MGM Grand Garden Arena crowd is being treated to three national anthems. Welshman Tom Jones sang God Save the Queen.

Under Card Fight Results:

In the semi-main event, WBC super featherweight champion Humberto Soto took longer than expected to dispose of Benoit Gaudet of Quebec, Canada. An uppercut in the 9th resulted in a knockdown that lead to Gaudet’s demise. Upon getting to his feet, Gaudet (20-2) was greeted by a Soto (48-7-2) left-right that had Gaudet out on his feet. Referee Jay Nady stepped in to stop the bout just as Gaudet fell to the canvas. The stoppage came at 2:25 of the ninth.

American middleweight hopeful Daniel Jacobs (16-0) passed the test of Michael Walker (19-2-2) to win his 16th professional fight. Jacobs displayed his entire arsenal of punches against an undersized but determined Walker. The judges rewarded Jacobs with scores of 80-72, 80-72 & 79-73.

Russian sensation Matt Korobov (5-0) outclassed Anthony Bartenelli (15-13-2) before stopping him at 2:15 of the second round. Korobov dropped Bartenelli with a left in the first and battered him with it thereafter. Referee Robert Byrd stepped between the fighters to save Bartenelli.

Cuban prospect Erislandy Lara (5-0) blanked Chris Gray (11-8) over four light middleweight rounds. Gray was unable to land the big blow but did more than enough to impress the judges. The final score cards were unanimously in favor of the southpaw Lara.

Pre-TV Fight Results:

Matthew Hatton (36-4-1) earned unanimous decision victory over Ernesto Zepeda (39-12-4) for what he hopes is the first of two Hatton victories on the evening. Hatton won by scores of 78-74, 78-74 7 79-73.

Mike Alvardo continued his perfect ways by decisioning Juaquin Gallardo (18-8-1) over eight light welterweight rounds. Alvardo boasts a record of 26 wins against no losses with 18 knock outs.

Bantamweight bomber Abner Mares (18-0) pounded away at Jonathan Perez (14-6) until his corner stopped the bout at the end of the sixth round. Mares, coming off a year long lay off, dominated the action from bell to bell.

Bernabe Concepcion (29-1-1) dominated fellow lightweight Yogli Herrera (21-8) over eight rounds. Concepcion pitched a shut out on the scorecards on route to the unanimous decision victory.

Manchester’s Joe Murray (2-0) bested Missael Nunez (4-8-2) over four featherweight rounds. All three judges scored the bout 39-35 for Murray.

Omar Chavez (15-0-1) stopped Tyler Ziolowski (11-7) with a body blow at 1:48 of the second. Chavez, the younger son of Julio Ceasar Chavez, continues to learn on the job while stepping up against more experienced opponents.

Are there two more aggressive, skilled boxers in the world than Manny Pacquiao and Ricky Hatton? Pacquiao overwhelms his opponents with speed and power. He’s capable of knocking you down three times in a fight (Barrera, 2003) or three times in a round (Marquez, 2004). Ricky Hatton overwhelms his opponents with pressure and punishment. He’ll hit you or hold you to win a fight. He’ll hunt you down and break your spirit. So what happens when aggression is matched by equal aggression? Tangibles like power, speed, and size or intangibles like defense or experience determine the outcome of a fight.

Power: Even

Manny “Pac man” Pacquiao gobbles up opponents. He has 36 KOs in 53 fights for a 68% KO rate. Pacquiao has stopped three of his last five opponents, including then lightweight champion David Diaz and De La Hoya at welterweight. However, both of those TKO victories resulted from the accumulation of Pacquiao’s punches over the course of the fights and not a sudden fight-ending punch or combination.

Ricky “The Hitman” Hatton has 32 KOs in 46 fights for a 70% KO rate. He has three stoppages in his last six fights; two over ex-champions Malignaggi and Jose Luis Castillo. However, Hatton has been unable to stop naturally bigger foes. He went the distance in a close decision victory over Luis Collazo at welterweight and was stopped in the 10th by Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Speed: Manny Pacquiao

Ask Oscar about Manny’s speed. De La Hoya never saw Pacquiao’s left hand let alone block it during their December 2008 encounter. Ask Erik Morales or Juan Manuel Marquez. The decisive factor in Pacquiao’s wins over these great fighters was hand speed. Morales may have matched Pacquiao’s intensity but could only muster one win in three fights. Marquez may be the more polished boxer yet his superior skills resulted in a draw and a close loss.

Hatton has good hand speed. His problem is Pacquiao has great hand and foot speed.

Size & Reach: Even

Yes, Manny Pacquiao started his career as a 106 pound fighter, but he was only 16 years old at the time. He has won world titles in four weight classes and has carried good power into each division. In his 147 lbs. fight against De La Hoya last December, Pacquiao entered the ring the heavier man. Pacquiao is listed at 5’6 ½” with a 67” reach.

Ricky Hatton is the career light welterweight. He turned pro as a 140 lbs. fighter in 1997 and has fought 44 of 46 fights in the division. He had two fights at 147 lbs. and returned to the light welterweight division for a reason. Hatton is listed at 5’ 7 ½” with a 65” reach.

Defense: Manny Pacquiao

Despite the ranting of Floyd Joy Mayweather on HBO’s 24/7, Pacquiao has grown in the science. Pacquiao’s balance is much improved and thus he is less vulnerable to being countered. Likewise, he has reined in his aggression and isn’t as open as he once was. If defense is defined as not being hit a la Willie Pep, Pacquiao is an improved defensive fighter.

Ricky Hatton has made strides under the tutelage of the aforementioned Mayweather. In his last outing Hatton controlled a slick boxer in Paulie Malignaggi and won by TKO in the 11th. However, in fights against plodders like Juan Lazcano in 2008 and Juan Urango in 2007, Hatton’s lack of head and lateral movement put him in jeopardy of being stopped. In his 2007 mega fight against Mayweather Jr., Hatton seemingly lead with his chin as he squared up to Mayweather Jr. and got knocked out late.

Experience: Even

Manny Pacquiao has fought the biggest names on the biggest stages. He is 6-1-1 in mega fights against Barrera, Marquez, Morales and De La Hoya. He’s won world titles in four weight divisions. Pacquiao has boxed 291 rounds over a professional career that began in 1995.

When Ricky Hatton faced IBF light welterweight champion Kostya Tszyu in 2005, few people outside Manchester gave Hatton a chance. Hatton overwhelmed the champion and the unthinkable happened when Tszyu retired on his stool. Though he didn’t fare as well in his next mega fight, Hatton gained a great deal of experience in the loss. Hatton has boxed 274 rounds as a professional and had 80 amateur bouts.

TSS Nation, who is going to come out on top when Pacquiao and Hatton tangle in “The Battle of East & West”? Join us here fight night, Saturday, May 2nd for live, round by round coverage of the fight from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. We’ll bring you undercard updates beginning at 8pm ET / 5pm PT and the main event as the action unfolds.