© Tom Hogan / Golden Boy Promotions

IBO Light Welterweight Champion turned back the clock last night in Las Vegas at the MGM Grand, pounding out a vintage high-pressure performance against IBF titlist Paulie Malignaggi for ten rounds until the New Yorker's corner threw in the towel just seconds into the eleventh frame.

Brash Brooklynite Malignaggi backed up his pre-fight boasts in the first round, catching the always advancing Hatton on the way in with sharp jabs but the light hitting IBF beltholder couldn't deter the Englishman from his pursuit.

In the second, Hatton struck the target with right hands on two occasions that shook Malignaggi badly and also began to mix in trademark left hooks to the body of his surprised foe. More...

© Tom Hogan / Golden Boy Promotions

Tonight, Manchester hero Ricky Hatton returns to the ring where he suffered his sole defeat 11 months ago when he faces the brash American Paulie Malignaggi in Las Vegas.

At stake are bragging rights as the number one in the light welterweight division.

Both men have only one defeat,both at the very highest level. For Hatton, in the same MGM ring as he steps into on Saturday night, he was defeated by pound for pound number one Floyd Mayweather Jr in 10 rounds in an attempt to become a two time welterweight champion in December last year.

For Malignaggi, in June 2006 he was defeated by Puerto Rican Miguel Cotto over 12 rounds in a WBO Light Welterweight Championship bid. More...

© Tom Hogan / Golden Boy Promotions

As Las Vegas prepares for tonight's fight night which headlines Ricky Hitman’ Hatton vs. Paulie ’Magic Man’ Malignaggi, Mancunian Hatton promises to give the best performance of his career - but the camp's main concern is that the 5,000 British fans who have made the trip to Vegas don’t ‘boo’ the American National Anthem again this year!

There was some embarrassment last year when the Brits jeered throughout the Anthem for Floyd Mayweather vs. Hatton and - not wanting to upset American Officials - Team Hatton are hoping they’re quiet this time.

With a renewed enthusiasm - Hatton is looking to prove the skeptic's wrong - all those people that think he might be finished.

With new trainer Floyd Mayweather Sr subjecting him to a different training regime, Hatton promises to ‘thrill’ once more. But with so many changes - and without the familiar face of Billy Graham in his corner - psychologically, will it be too much for the Hitman? More...

Click for larger image © Tom Hogan / Golden Boy Promotions

In preparation for their hotly anticipated clash this evening at MGM Grand in Las Vegas, top light welters in the world Ricky Hatton and Paulie Malignaggi made weight yesterday along with the undercard fighters.

Ricky Hatton: 140 lb
Paulie Malignaggi: 139 lb More...

Paulie Malignaggi: "I'm just glad to be here and I want to thank everybody. I'm not going to go through the names because there are a thousand of them but I want to thank everyone who's involved in setting up this whole show.

"I feel very prepared and I've had a great camp. I'm more than ready for this fight Saturday night. Like Lou [Di Bella] said, I've been waiting a long time for a fight of this magnitude and it's finally here and it's a very exciting time for me. More...

British welterweight star Matthew Hatton and junior featherweight contender Rey "Boom Boom" Bautista will be pushed to the limit in pivotal bouts on the off-television undercard of Saturday night's showdown between Ricky "The Hitman" Hatton and Paul "Magic Man" Malignaggi at the MGM Grand Garden Arena
in Las Vegas, Nevada. More...

IBF Junior Welterweight Champion Paulie “The Magic Man” Malignaggi, 25-1 (5), is significantly ahead of schedule in terms of full recovery from his May 28 surgery to repair a fractured metacarpal bone of the middle finger on his right hand.

Malignaggi already is preparing for his November 22 mega-showdown against Ricky Hatton in Las Vegas, lightly working out in Brooklyn’s famed Gleason’s Gym as well as running three days a week. More...

IBF junior welterweight champion Paulie “The Magic Man” Malignaggi, 25-1 (5), successfully underwent hand surgery this past Wednesday, May 28, to repair a fractured metacarpal bone of the middle finger on his right hand, suffered during his title-defense win by 12 round decision against Lovemore N’dou last Saturday in Manchester, England.

Renowned boxing hand specialist Dr. Steven Margles operated on Paulie at the Lahey Clinic in Burlington, Massachusetts. Dr. Margles has also repaired the hands of former world champions Vinny Paz, “Irish” Micky Ward and Harry Simon, to name a few of his more notable boxing patients. More...

IBF junior welterweight champion Paulie “The Magic Man” Malignaggi, 25-1 (5), was examined today by his hand specialist, Dr. Steven Margles, at the Lahey Hospital in Burlington, Massachusetts.

Dr. Margles confirmed that Malignaggi fractured his right hand during his win by 12-round decision against Lovemore N’dou last Saturday in Manchester, England. More...