• Most Popular
  • Most Shared

Hatton buoyed by support from fans

Kieran Mulvaney
LAS VEGAS
Wed Dec 5, 2007 3:09pm EST

LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - Ricky Hatton has been overwhelmed by the outpouring of support from fans ahead of Saturday's title showdown with WBC welterweight champion Floyd Mayweather.

Sports

"Absolutely fantastic," said Hatton of the welcome he received from some 1,000 fans packing the lobby of the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas when he arrived on Tuesday.

"When you think, there's probably only a quarter of them here at the minute, so to give the support like they did, I found it amazing."

Up to 10,000 fans are expected to make the trip from England to Las Vegas, far in excess of the 4,000 seats allocated to Hatton supporters.

Tickets for the fight sold out within 30 minutes, although Internet resale sites are offering ringside seats for almost

$13,000.

Several British fans told Reuters that they had no tickets and no intention of paying such inflated prices.

They expected to attend one of the numerous closed-circuit showings along the Las Vegas Strip, but had traveled largely for the atmosphere.

That was evident when the throng cheered Hatton's arrival and, half an hour later, booed and jeered the appearance of American Mayweather.

"I saw a few American fans going, 'Who are ya? Who are ya?'" said Hatton, 43-0, describing the taunts directed at his opponent.

"Which is always nice to see, because obviously the reason why I came over to fight in the first place was to get a fan base over here."

Mayweather, 38-0, who was born in Michigan but makes his home in Las Vegas, insisted that he was the bigger draw.

"How many times has he sold out a fight in Vegas?" he asked rhetorically of Hatton. "Every fan that comes to the fight, they all come over to be a part of the Floyd Mayweather experience, because they're boxing fans."

However, even Mayweather had to concede the passion and loyalty of Hatton's supporters.

"I love UK fight fans," he said. "You guys are die-hard fans. Even when Ricky Hatton gets his (rear) beat, you're still going to love him. I wish we had fans like that."

(Editing by Alan Baldwin)
Sports


More from Reuters

Demonstrator holds a signboard with a slogan "Bla bla bla ACT NOW" during a rally outside the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen December 12, 2009. REUTERS/Christian Charisius

"Polluters are given rights to continue their dirty habits"

A climate change scientist blasts proposals for a cap and trade system, arguing it allows dirty industries to continue polluting, instead of rewarding innovation.  Full Article | Full Coverage 

    Climate Conference
    People walk by a Bank of America branch in New York. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson

    The search is on -- again

    Bank of America has less than two weeks left before Chief Executive Ken Lewis steps down. With the top candidate out of the picture, here's a look at what might happen next.  Full Article 

    Executive compensation
    Indian woman mourns death of her relative killed in tsunami in Cuddalore. When an earthquake of magnitude 9.15 struck off Indonesia's Aceh province on December, 26, 2004, it triggered a huge tsuanmi that raced across the Indian Ocean and hit Indonesia, Thailand, Sri Lanka and India. The worst natural disaster of the decade left 230,000 people dead or missing. Taken on December 28, 2004 by Arko Datta

    Pictures that defined a decade

    A woman's grief amid the tsunami devastation and one woman's fight against police in the Amazon are among the indelible Reuters images of the last 10 years.  Slideshow 

    Pictures