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While much of the United States will be glued to their television sets during the late afternoon early evening to watch and bet on the 2009 Kentucky Derby Saturday, there is another important wagering event that takes place later that night: It's Manny Pacquiao vs. Ricky Hatton, both of whom have huge loyal followings back home (Pacquiao, the Philippines and Ricky Hatton, the United Kingdom).
This is anyone's fight to win despite all the experts being all over Pacquiao. The oddsmakers at Sportingbet.com had Pacquiao as a -223 favorite. Hatton would pay out well at +180 odds (US$100 pays US$180). (please note that Sportingbet does not accept US players. Those residing in the US can bet at Super Book)
Here is what's at stake for Manny Pacquiao in this fight (a la ESPN.com):
If Pacquiao (48-3-2, 36 KOs), the betting favorite, dethrones England's Hatton (45-1, 32 KOs), he will accomplish something no fighter in boxing history has ever done, which is to claim the lineal championship in a fourth division. Lineal, as in the man who beat the man, who beat the man, who beat the man, etc. In other words, he'll be considered the "real" champion in a fourth division, not just a mere titleholder, the way he was when he claimed his junior featherweight belt and lightweight title.
"Pacquiao goes down as one of the greats if he can accomplish a junior welterweight championship to go along with his other hardware," said boxing historian and occasional ESPN.com contributor Bert Sugar. "Reason being -- it's not only difficult to leapfrog this many weight classes, but because you have equaled and passed greats like a Henry Armstrong, greats like Alexis Arguello. The way he has done it, we still don't know his true fighting weight. Even with all the belts, he's still the lineal champion in so many weight classes. I make him out to be the greatest Asian fighter of all time and conceivably one of the greatest fighters of all time if he can carry this off.
"Now, we have a lot more titles, but it still does not dim or in any way minimize what Manny Pacquiao has done."
Ricky Hatton weighed in at the junior-welterweight limit of 140 pounds Friday at the weigh-in for his Saturday night showdown against Manny Pacquiao at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
Pacquiao came in at 138 pounds.
Tyrone Black, Gambling911.com
