LOS ANGELES, July 31 – Fans may call it “Manchester Muscle vs. New York Flash,” “England vs. The United States,” or “Brawler vs. Boxer.” Regardless of how it is described, the Junior Welterweight World Championship unification bout between England’s Ricky “The Hitman” Hatton and New York’s Paulie “The Magic Man” Malignaggi on Saturday, Nov. 22 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas will be a clash between the two best 140-pound fighters in the world and one of the most intriguing and exciting fights of 2008..
Tickets priced at $1,000, $750, $500, $300 and $150 go on sale Friday, Aug. 8 at 10 a.m. Ticket sales are limited to four (4) per person at the $1,000 price level and a total of two (2) tickets either at $750, $500, $300 or $150. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call Ticketmaster at (702) 474-4000. Tickets also are available for purchase at www.ticketmaster.com.
“I am looking forward to returning to America, fighting again at the MGM Grand and challenging Maglignaggi for his title,” said Hatton. “Las Vegas is like a second home to me. The fans treat me like gold and I promise them another exciting value for money fight.”
Malignaggi said, “I am thrilled to be involved in the biggest 140 pound fight of ’08. This will be my first fight in Las Vegas, which makes it all the more exciting. Las Vegas’ nickname is the “City of Lights”, so it is only fitting that on November 22, 2008 “The Magic Man” will be lighting “The Hitman” up all over the MGM Grand Garden Arena.”
Hatton vs. Malignaggi, a 12-round Junior Welterweight World title unification bout for Hatton’s Ring Magazine Junior Welterweight World Championship and Malignaggi’s International Boxing Federation (IBF) Junior Welterweight World Championship, is presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Punch Promotions and DiBella Entertainment, and will air live on HBO’s World Championship Boxing.
Oscar de la Hoya, president of Golden Boy Promotions, said, “Hatton is an aggressive puncher who swarms his opponents from start to finish while Malignaggi is one of the purest boxers in the game today. As a fan, I am excited to see if Hatton can lure Malignaggi into a brawl or if Malignaggi can dictate the tempo and make the fight his. No matter what happens, I think when their styles collide, it’s going to make for great action and great drama.”
DiBella Entertainment President, Lou DiBella, said, “Paulie Malignaggi is a champion and an elite fighter I am thrilled that he will be able to achieve superstardom when he fights Ricky, one of the world’s most popular and accomplished fighters.”
Kery Davis, senior vice president of programming for HBO Sports, said, “Ricky Hatton and Paul Malignaggi are two fighters who put it all on the line each time they enter the ring. This is an important fight for both of their careers.”
Richard Sturm, president of Sports and Entertainment for MGM MIRAGE, said, “We welcome the return of Ricky Hatton and his supporters to MGM Grand in November as well as the opportunity to host Paulie Malignaggi’s Las Vegas debut. We have no doubt this could be one of the most exciting events of 2008 for the fans as well as our customers and look forward to an electric atmosphere inside the MGM Grand Garden Arena.”
An international superstar hailing from Manchester, England, the storied career of Hatton (44-1, 31 KOs) began in 1997 and for the last 11 years, he has been thrilling fight fans around the world with his aggressive style in the ring and down to earth attitude outside of it. Owner of wins over Kostya Tszyu, Vince Phillips, Luis Collazo, Jose Luis Castillo and Juan Urango, Hatton – a two division world champion – fell short of the pound-for-pound and world welterweight championships in his 2007 super fight against Floyd Mayweather. However, the 29-year-old bounced back impressively at his natural weight of 140 pounds in May as he scored a near shutout 12-round unanimous decision over Juan Lazcano.
Known for his flashy style and pound for pound ability to out-talk any fighter in the world, Brooklyn’s Malignaggi (25-1, 5 KOs) has also developed a positive reputation for his heart and determination to overcome adversity throughout his seven-year pro career. A dazzling boxer with a stiff jab, lightning speed and quick combinations, the 27-year-old gained a legion of fans for his gutsy effort in a 12-round defeat at the hands of Miguel Cotto in 2006, and even more followers jumped on his bandwagon when he nearly shut out Lovemore N’dou in 2007 to win the IBF Junior Welterweight World crown. Malignaggi has since defended his title against Herman Ngoudjo and in a rematch against N’dou, but a victory over Hatton is what this New Yorker is truly seeking.
For room packages and availability and event ticket information about the MGM Grand, call (800) 929-1111 or (702) 891-7777 or log onto the World Wide Web at www.mgmgrand.com.
The MGM Grand Garden Arena is home to concerts, championship boxing and premier sporting and special events. The Arena offers comfortable seating for as many as 16,800 with excellent sightlines and state-of-the-art acoustics, lighting and sound. Prominent events to date have included world championship fights between Evander Holyfield and Mike Tyson as well as Oscar de la Hoya vs. Floyd Mayweather and George Foreman vs. Michael Moorer; and concerts by The Rolling Stones, Madonna, Elton John, Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney, Bette Midler, Gloria Estefan, Janet Jackson, Phil Collins, Billy Joel, Backstreet Boys, ‘N Sync, Sting, Jimmy Buffett and the Barbra Streisand Millennium Concert. The MGM Grand Garden Arena also is home to the annual Academy of Country Music Awards (ACMA) and U.S. Open of Motocross.
An exciting undercard will be announced in the near future. For more information visit www.goldenboypromotions.com and www.rickyhitmanhatton.com.