Relaxed Hatton predicts win over Pacquiao

Britain's Ricky Hatton confidently predicted victory in his IBO light-welterweight title defence against Filipino Manny Pacquiao after being welcomed by cheering fans in Las Vegas yesterday.

Hatton has not lost at his natural weight of 140 pounds but conceded he would have faced an uphill task had he met the former four-division world champion one or two years earlier.

"Three or four fights ago, Manny Pacquiao would have beaten me," Hatton told a small group of reporters as he sat on the edge of the ring in which he will fight the Filipino southpaw on Saturday.

"I don't think so now. I feel so much more relaxed because I'm boxing technically so much better. I'm jabbing and moving a lot better.

Hatton, 45-1 (32 KOs), attributes his increased confidence to improvements he has made since linking with American trainer Floyd Mayweather Sr. late last year.

However he promised his fans he would never abandon the frenetic fighting style that has made him so popular in his native Manchester and elsewhere around the world.

"Everyone seems to think that because of my new training camp I've turned into this twinkle toed jab-and-move boxer," Hatton, nicknamed the Hitman, said.

"But I haven't. I'm still aggressive. I'm still as ferocious as ever."