Pilipino icon Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao is greeted by bellman at the Grosvenor House hotel as he arrives in downtown London for a mega UK media tour to announce his upcoming World Jr. Welterweight championship fight against Ricky “The Hitman” Hatton on May 2 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Pacquiao and Hatton will stop first in Manchester Saturday 
to hold a press rally at the Trafford Center-Great Hall along with a friendly darts competition later in the day. On Sunday,Pacquiao will tour London followed by a press conference Monday at the Imperial War Museum.
“I am looking forward to the promotional tour that will be held in London and Manchester this weekend as I have received tons of emails from English boxing fans, who are one of the most passionate in the world. Even if it’s going to be hostile territory for me-as Ricky Hatton comes from this boxing-crazy country-I know that I will enjoy every minute of my brief stay there as I have heard a lot of great things about England, its notable people, its amazing culture and its proud history, ” said Pacquiao. ” After my trip to England, I will proceed to Los Angeles so I could kick off my preparation for Ricky Hatton, who is one of the world’s most exciting fighters.”
“Hatton is a very dangerous opponent as I have seen most of his high-caliber fight on video and you cannot take somebody like him lightly. This is going to be a big challenge for me. This early, I am confident in saying that I will train harder for Hatton and I won’t be surprised if I end up in a much better shape than when I fought the legendary Oscar De La Hoya last December. Once I report for training camp at the Wild Card under my very capable trainer Freddie Roach, my sole focus will be training. I will be eating, breathing and living Ricky Hatton from the day I start my training camp. I assure fight fans that when I get into the ring on May 2, I am going to show my best-as always-and ours will be an explosive and exciting fight. And most importantly, I am dedicating this important fight to my beloved countrymen and to all boxing fans from around the world.”