On Saturday night from the Paris Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, HBO will have their first card of 2007. The card will feature two of HBO's newest additions in Ricky Hatton and Jose Luis Castillo, and the network will have a lot riding on the fights. For Hatton, it's his third fight since coming over from Showtime. Hatton was not hugely impressive in either showing against Carlos Maussa and Luis Collazo. As for Castillo, this is his first fight since moving from Showtime, and he's looking for a big performance to try and erase memories of his cheating the scales during his debacle against Diego Corrales. One thing is for sure going into this fight, the fighters and the network have a lot riding on Saturday night.

    First, let's look at HBO. Some of HBO's top fighters have gone away. Guys like Fernando Vargas, Arturo Gatti, Bernard Hopkins, and Roy Jones. On top of that two of their biggest draws, Oscar de la Hoya and Floyd Mayweather Jr. have hinted that their fighting days are nearing an end. So, HBO has gone out in search for new blood, hoping to fill some of the voids left.

    Two of the biggest talent they signed up are Hatton and Castillo. Their biggest was probably Hatton, who was white hot after defeating Kostya Tszyu a couple of years ago. He was just what everybody was looking for, an exciting, action packed fighter. A fighter that could fill the void left if Vargas and Gatti disappear. However, so far Hatton has not been what HBO had hoped in his two fights since joining the network.

    He looked anything but invincible in an ugly fight with Carlos Maussa, and barely won. Though he looked better against Luis Collazo, it still wasn't the type of performance that the network was envisioning when they finally got him to come to the U.S.

    HBO is also taking a big risk with Castillo, who can be a very exciting fighter, and has been involved in tremendous fights. But, there are question marks with Castillo. First off, can be he get over the weight drama that unfolded during his scheduled last fight with Diego Corrales? Can he make fans forget about that, and how he helped ruin what would have been a fabulous trilogy? Second off, can he recover from those battles with weight and some ring rust? Remember, Castillo always stayed pretty active, and he's been off for a while. If Castillo is any bit like the Castillo of old, then HBO will be happy. But, if Castillo's weight battles linger with him, this could be a bust for the network.

    What the fighters and HBO are hoping for is a blockbuster showdown between Hatton-Castillo in the near future. The fight would certainly have Fight of the Year potential written all over it. So, could this fight be a preview of the future? It's happened before, and HBO is hoping to showcase the two fighters in hopes of a future mega fight meeting. The network did the same thing before Oscar de la Hoya and Bernard Hopkins met. They had them fight on the same card against Felix Sturm and Carl Daniels. They even had Hopkins and Roy Jones fight on the same night in hopes of a possible match that never took place. Remember Castillo fighting on the same card as Floyd Mayweather against Cesar Bazan before his scheduled clash with Pretty Boy? Mayweather also fought on dueling cards with Diego Corrales (Corrales fought Angel Manfredy) before their super fight. This is what HBO has in mind again, and I don't think you'll hear anyone complaining if the match gets made.

    Saturday's card is a lot more than just a showcase for two prominent fighters. The network and the fighters have a great future payday on the line that would probably get ruined if either man loses this coming weekend. Big wins by both would do a lot to help the fans forget their previous let-downs and would set up a potentially  huge showdown that the boxing public will love to see. All this will be riding on what happens Saturday night, and you can bet there will be some nervous suits watching the action.

     What makes these fights on Saturday night scary is the opponents that Hatton and Castillo will be facing. They're not fighting aging veterans, looking for one last big shot. They're fighting hungry, young undefeated fighters looking to make a big splash. Hatton is fighting undefeated 17-0-1 Juan Urango of Columbia for his old junior welterweight title; Castillo is also fighting an undefeated tough kid in Herman Ngoudjo of Cameroon. Sometimes these young, hungry fighters can take advantage of a situation like this, (i.e. Carlos Quintana, Humberto Soto), and wreck the most beautiful of set plans. So, Hatton and Castillo ought to beware, and not drool just yet at the prospects of their meeting in a big money clash later this year.

    Saturday's HBO card has plenty of subplots, and plenty of angst. No doubt it will also have plenty of nervous fans watching, hoping that a future big investment doesn't fall by the wayside. If all goes well for the fighters and HBO, this Saturday night will be a preview of bigger things to come.