On May 24, at City of Manchester Stadium, British fight fans will be treated to a boxing feast. Leading the top of the card will be Britain’s favorite son and most popular sportsman this decade, Ricky Hatton. In addition, a great deal of interest will be focused on the first appearance in Britain of IBF light welterweight champion Paul Malignaggi who defends his title against hardened former beltholder Lovemore Ndou..
This past Saturday night, Junior Witter lost his chance and WBC title when defeated by American Timothy Bradley, who has now thrown his own name into the ring to challenge Hatton but Malignaggi is looking to convince the British public that he alone is the man to face the number one superstar in the division in the Autumn.
Malignaggi will arrive in London early next week with his entourage and will be looking to impress the British public the same way Timothy Bradley did as he is intent upon stealing the spotlight from Hatton on May 24.
The brash Italian-American boxer is not frightened to say what he thinks and his mouth is as quick as his fists, so fans in the UK can expect to be treated to a week of wisecracks and sharp punching.
One of the most interesting fights on the undercard is the Commonwealth welterweight championship when Matthew Hatton challenges Craig Watson for his title. Watson knows that a loss will put him back down the ratings and lower on the cards of future dates so he’s determined to make sure that it’s not a Hatton double on May 24.
Matthew will also be looking to steal the thunder from his older brother Ricky as he tries to convince the fans that there is another Hatton worth following on his way to capturing world honors.
The show at City of Manchester Stadium consists of five title fights and with each contest evenly matched, this is one of those bills where you can’t say the home corner is certain to win. It’s a great night for both the betting public as well as the boxing fans.
Those unlucky enough to not be one of the 55,000 fans in attendance in Manchester can tune onto Sky Box Office to catch all the action starting at 7:30 PM.
Doors open at 5:00PM, boxing starts at 5:30PM and the show will be over by 11:00PM so the fans can go out and enjoy the hospitality of Manchester’s restaurants, bars and clubs.
Any remaining tickets to Hatton vs. Lazcano can be purchased on www.ticketmaster.co.uk , www.seetickets.com , www.gigsandtours.com and www.rickyhitmanhatton.co.uk .
Frank Maloney Promotions also announce the British light heavyweight title fight between champion Tony Oakey and challenger Dean Francis on Friday, June 13 at the Mountbatten Centre in Portsmouth, England. Tickets are priced at £80 and £40 and are available by logging onto www.frankmaloney.com or by calling the Box Office at 0871 226 1508. Sky Sports will televise.