Hitman Hatton ready for big time

RICKY HATTON is ready to step into the ring for the biggest, and most lucrative, fights of his career after retaining his WBU light-welterweight title in impressive style.

World-class Ghanaian Ben Tackie was hammered around the ring for 12 rounds by the Manchester Hitman before Hatton picked up a landslide 120-109 (twice), 118-110 points verdicts.

Now the biggest fights out there are being lined up for the 25-year-old, who proved beyond doubt that he belongs in the very top drawer.

Hatton's promoter Frank Warren is anxious to keep the Briton fighting in his home city, where he sold another 17,000 tickets at the Manchester Evening News Arena on Saturday night.

But now his biggest rivals are queuing up to get a piece of him. Gary Shaw, promoter of former WBA champion Sharmba Mitchell, was at ringside and declared afterwards: "If the money is right we would love to come and fight Ricky here.

"Ricky Hatton is a real fighter who can take on the top guys. I think he is up there and ready to go and he made that step against Ben Tackie.

"The fighter you saw here would make a very interesting fight against Sharmba Mitchell."

Mitchell is tied up in a challenge to undisputed champion Kostya Tszyu in Moscow in February.

But win or lose, Mitchell looks a good bet to pose an even sterner test to Hatton as early as next summer.

Mitchell had also been pushed to points by Tackie in May, but the manner of Hatton's victory was more comprehensive.