INQUIRER Sports

THE MANNY Pacquiao-Ricky Hatton showdown is now a certified pay-per-view monster hit.

Exceeding everyone’s expectations, the fight—which Pacquiao won by knockout late in the second round to wrest Hatton’s International Boxing Organization light welterweight crown—drew anywhere from 1.6 million to 2 million PPV buys, according to the USA Today newspaper.

The fight’s co-promoter, Bob Arum of Top Rank, had earlier projected sales of about 800,000 due to the world financial crisis.

Initial sales reports from cable firms, however, indicated that PPV buys was already over the 1.6 million mark, which would make the Pacquiao-Hatton duel the fourth biggest ever in boxing annals.

The Oscar De La Hoya-Floyd Mayweather Jr. battle in 2007 remains the all-time PPV top draw with 2.4 million buys.

It was followed by the Holyfield-Tyson II with 1.99 million buys and the Lennox Lewis-Tyson in 2002 with 1.95 million.

If the Pacquiao-Hatton bout indeed breached 1.6 million buys, it would break the PPV records of both fighters.

The Pacquiao-De La Hoya tussle netted 1.25 million buys while the Hatton-Mayweather battle drew 915,000.

While the Pacquiao-De La Hoya clash attracted a live gate of just 15,000, the Pacquiao-Hatton tiff drew 16,262 fans to the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

Meanwhile, unbeaten Venezuelan knockout artist Edwin Valero has urged Arum to include him on the list of Pacquiao’s probable next opponents.

Valero, the WBC lightweight champ with a 25-0 card, all by knockout, said he’s willing to move up in weight to fight Pacquiao.

Junior middleweight prospect Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. also wants his name on the roster that already includes Puerto Rican Miguel Cotto, Shane Mosley and the winner of the Floyd Mayweather Jr.-Juan Manuel Marquez fight in July.

Arum said he will consult Pacquiao and chief trainer Freddie Roach as to who will be the next opponent of the reigning pound-for-pound king.

In a related development, Hatton told The Sun newspaper that he was absolutely devastated by the one-sided beating he absorbed from Pacquiao.

“My head is in bits,” Hatton said. “I don’t think I could cry anymore after the Floyd Mayweather Jr. loss, but I certainly have.”