I’ll pass on the hype that arrived long before the big Vegas shootout - right or wrong the choice is Ricky Hatton - supporting my pick is his recovering from the Mayweather TKO12 loss, with wins over Malignaggi and Lazcano. Hints of smoldering flames still in the Manchester hit-man body.  

 

Pacquiao will engage early on - but the change from successful power, sling-shot artist with the left hand, will not hold up over a likely grueling battle of attrition with Hatton over the long run.

 

Hatton’s single debit to Mayweather (far the best PPP fighter in today‘s game) nearly went to the judges - further, Ricky claimed scalps with surnames Kostya Tszyu, Jose Luis Castillo, Juan Urango, Louis Collazo - Judah, maybe?

 

Pacquiao  is entertaining - comes to fight - and has power in the left mitten - but one fight stands out in my aging memory bank - the split-decision gift over a much better skilled Juan Manuel Marquez in their jr. lightweight bout - truly a barn burner, but Marquez recovered from several opening round knockdowns to eventually have the better over Pac-Man, but failed to be rewarded. 
     
I like Hatton via late round TKO.

 

Only glitch, if assigned Vegas man in charge becomes 21st century political, and finds Hatton too uncivil for this side of the pond, during them expected hot exchanges.
 
GEO -