Amir Khan wants Ricky Hatton

Amir Khan told the Glasgow Herald that the prospect of fighting Ricky Hatton is one that greatly appeals to him. This comes as no surprise, since Hatton is seen by many observers as a shot fighter and Khan's trainer, Freddie Roach, has named Hatton as a guy he'd love to have Amir fight. Freddie is getting quite a reputation with Khan for trying to pick off guys he's sure Khan can beat, even once disgustingly naming Erik Morales as an opponent they'd like to take a crack at.

But most interesting is that Khan mentions the upcoming mandatory defense of his WBA 140-pound title, which would be against interim titlist Marcos Maidana, a fighter Roach has said he'll advise Khan to avoid. If he's not talking about fighting Maidana, there is no other mandatory challenger. He just disposed of the last unqualified opponent (Dmitriy Salita) that the WBA dictated, and in most cases he would be free to take an optional fight next.

"I would hate to get to the end of my career and look back at it and not have had the chance to fight Ricky Hatton. I still think Ricky has a bit left in him and I think he also has something he wants to prove to himself after the defeat by Pacquiao.

"Obviously, I have a mandatory defence of my WBA title to make and Ricky probably would want a warm-up fight but maybe later in the year it could happen. It would be the type of fight that would be great at an outdoor venue like one of the big football grounds."

Hatton-Khan would indeed do a massive house in the U.K., particularly if Ricky got his feet wet with a decent tune-up win before then. There are plenty who have said of late that Hatton can no longer make 140 pounds, as he's gotten grossly out of shape since his May 2 loss to Manny Pacquiao. Khan does have a frame that could support at least a few more pounds, though, so a welterweight clash against the faded, money-making Hatton could be more than worth the risk of moving up in weight for Khan.

This fight has been discussed plenty, and there does seem to be a reluctance on both sides, or at least there had been until this quote from Amir. This is definitely the most gung-ho I've ever heard either of them sound about the possible matchup.