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BOSTON (Ticker) - Things certainly have changed for Ricky Hatton since he last fought on American soil.
A superstar in his native England, Hatton ventures overseas for the first time in nearly six years and up in weight for the first time in his career to take on WBA welterweight champion Luis Collazo on Saturday at TD Banknorth Garden.
The 27-year-old Hatton (40-0, 30 KOs) has plenty of supporters and few critics back home, but did not achieve international notoriety until forcing longtime champion Kostya Tszyu to quit on his stool 11 months ago and claim the IBF light welterweight crown.
a somewhat surprising result signaled a radical career shift for Hatton, who last fought outside England in 2000. Instantly, his name was thrown in with the wealth of stars at or near the welterweight level, most notably Floyd Mayweather Jr., who secured his fourth world title by knocking off Zab Judah for the IBF welterweight belt last month.
Bigger fights may be on the horizon for Hatton, but just making a lasting impression is at the forefront of Saturday's agenda.
"I'm challenging an American champion for a WBA title in America against a good, young, class-act southpaw," Hatton said. "Then there's the added challenge of moving up seven pounds to welterweight. It is a real fight, a real title and a real opponent and I can't wait to show the Americans what I can do."
Hatton's signature win over Tszyu was followed up in impressive fashion with a ninth-round KO of Carlos Maussa in November for the WBA light welterweight title. It continued a strong run in which Hatton has knocked out seven of 10 opponents and defeated the other three by definitive decisions.
To claim a title at a new weight class in a new venue has Hatton eyeing new heights.
"It's an unbelievable fight for me," he said. "I get the opportunity here to become a double-weight world champion and the owner of three world titles."
A native of Queens, New York, Collazo (26-1, 12 KOs) has to be pleased with a return to New England. He claimed his WBA belt less than an hour west of here in Worcester by winning a controversial split decision over hometown favorite Jose Antonio Rivera in April 2005.
Collazo's first title defense went even better, as he scored an eighth-round TKO of former lightweight champion Miguel Angel Gonzalez in August.
But while all the attention is being turned on Hatton, Collazo is intent on boosting his resume as well.
"Ricky talks about how he's going to be a world champ at two different weights, but you're wrong Ricky," Collazo said. "Ricky, that's not going to happen! This is the fight of my life. This fight will put me on top of the boxing world. It's my belt, and I'm leaving with it on Saturday night."
A gracious Hatton absorbed Collazo's boasts and deflected any talk of future riches.
"There's all this talk of fights with (Miguel Angel) Cotto, and (Arturo) Gatti and Mayweather, but I know that Luis stands in the way of those fights for me, and I stand in his way as well," Hatton said.
On the undercard, IBF featherweight champion Valdemir Pereira (23-0, 15 KOs) of Brazil will make his first title defense against another Englishman, Esham Pickering (29-4, 11 KOs).
The fights will be televised by HBO beginning at 9:45 pm EDT.
A superstar in his native England, Hatton ventures overseas for the first time in nearly six years and up in weight for the first time in his career to take on WBA welterweight champion Luis Collazo on Saturday at TD Banknorth Garden.
The 27-year-old Hatton (40-0, 30 KOs) has plenty of supporters and few critics back home, but did not achieve international notoriety until forcing longtime champion Kostya Tszyu to quit on his stool 11 months ago and claim the IBF light welterweight crown.
a somewhat surprising result signaled a radical career shift for Hatton, who last fought outside England in 2000. Instantly, his name was thrown in with the wealth of stars at or near the welterweight level, most notably Floyd Mayweather Jr., who secured his fourth world title by knocking off Zab Judah for the IBF welterweight belt last month.
Bigger fights may be on the horizon for Hatton, but just making a lasting impression is at the forefront of Saturday's agenda.
"I'm challenging an American champion for a WBA title in America against a good, young, class-act southpaw," Hatton said. "Then there's the added challenge of moving up seven pounds to welterweight. It is a real fight, a real title and a real opponent and I can't wait to show the Americans what I can do."
Hatton's signature win over Tszyu was followed up in impressive fashion with a ninth-round KO of Carlos Maussa in November for the WBA light welterweight title. It continued a strong run in which Hatton has knocked out seven of 10 opponents and defeated the other three by definitive decisions.
To claim a title at a new weight class in a new venue has Hatton eyeing new heights.
"It's an unbelievable fight for me," he said. "I get the opportunity here to become a double-weight world champion and the owner of three world titles."
A native of Queens, New York, Collazo (26-1, 12 KOs) has to be pleased with a return to New England. He claimed his WBA belt less than an hour west of here in Worcester by winning a controversial split decision over hometown favorite Jose Antonio Rivera in April 2005.
Collazo's first title defense went even better, as he scored an eighth-round TKO of former lightweight champion Miguel Angel Gonzalez in August.
But while all the attention is being turned on Hatton, Collazo is intent on boosting his resume as well.
"Ricky talks about how he's going to be a world champ at two different weights, but you're wrong Ricky," Collazo said. "Ricky, that's not going to happen! This is the fight of my life. This fight will put me on top of the boxing world. It's my belt, and I'm leaving with it on Saturday night."
A gracious Hatton absorbed Collazo's boasts and deflected any talk of future riches.
"There's all this talk of fights with (Miguel Angel) Cotto, and (Arturo) Gatti and Mayweather, but I know that Luis stands in the way of those fights for me, and I stand in his way as well," Hatton said.
On the undercard, IBF featherweight champion Valdemir Pereira (23-0, 15 KOs) of Brazil will make his first title defense against another Englishman, Esham Pickering (29-4, 11 KOs).
The fights will be televised by HBO beginning at 9:45 pm EDT.
