When world junior welterweight boxing champion Ricky Hatton fought Floyd Mayweather in Las Vegas last year, American fans were amazed by how devoted his fan base was: Some 35,000 people made the trip from Hatton's home town of Manchester, England, to Vegas, and they made the MGM Grand rock with their boisterous soccer-like songs and chants.
Hatton is fighting at the MGM Grand again on Saturday night when he defends his title against Paulie Malignaggi, and although he doesn't expect to have quite as many fans in attendance, he told me today that he does expect to have a home-crowd advantage, even though he's fighting an American on American soil.
"They'll come over again in droves," Hatton said. "It's really fantastic to hear them. Back in England we're in a recession -- we're calling it a credit crunch -- and with New Year's and Christmas coming up, when you think 10,000 fans are going to come out, that's phenomenal support. I think 35,000 came out for the Mayweather fight, but I think 10,000 still makes it feel like it's your hometown. Ten thousand people coming halfway across the world, I think it just shows they're the best fans in the world."
But Hatton did have one request of his fans: If they come, he doesn't want them to boo the "Star-Spangled Banner," as some of them did at the Mayweather fight.
"Last time they booed the national anthem," Hatton said, unprompted. "That tends to be an English soccer thing, but there's no excuse for it, and I don't think that did me any favors."
The unfortunate booing of the anthem aside, Hatton's fans were great at the Mayweather fight. It will be a treat to hear them again on Saturday night.
