Boxing: AMIR CAN'T HELP YOU! HATTON v PACQUIAO Ricky hammers Manny's spar plan.

Byline: BY DAVID ANDERSON 

RICKY HATTON claims Manny Pacquiao is playing into his hands by sparring with Amir Khan.

World pound-for-pound king Pacquiao is jetting Khan over to his Los Angeles gym next month to help him prepare for his May 2 showdown with Hatton in Las Vegas.

The Hitman says the Filipino is wasting his time because he will learn nothing about how to tackle him from sparring with stablemate Khan.

Hatton's style is different to Khan's and he loves to work on the inside, delivering his rib-cracking body punches, while the Athens silver medallist is better on the outside with his longer reach.

"I've read all the headlines about Amir plotting my downfall, but I don't blame him for training with Manny because it's a good thing for him and his career," said the light-welterweight star.

"I'm not bothered about it at all.

"Amir is so far away from me as far as styles go that I don't see the point of it. In fact, it puts even more confidence in me. Pacquiao says he's using Amir for speed, but it will be the wrong kind of speed.

"Amir's four inches taller than me and he won't be pushing Pacquiao back on the ropes, pressurising him and throwing power punches to the body like I do." Hatton feels this is just another attempt by the Pacman's and Khan's trainer Freddie Roach to unsettle him and says the mind games will not work.

Roach has already tried to rattle the Mancunian by claiming he would have been better off coming to him rather than rival trainer Floyd Mayweather Senior and that Pacquiao will beat him in three rounds. "After just a few weeks with Amir Khan, Freddie came out and said Amir would beat me," said Hatton.

"Now he's saying Manny will beat me in three rounds. Maybe it's all early mind games and he is trying to big-up his fighter, confidence wise. I know Floyd was disgusted by what he said and was upset by it. But I'm not bothered at all because I'm so confident that I will win this fight." Hatton, 30, claims he has never been in such good shape seven weeks out from a bout as he spoke yesterday at his training base at the Village Hotel in Ashton-under-Lyne.

He has morphed from the take-away-loving Ricky Fatton into the pocket battleship that is Ricky Hatton and is already under the 11-stone mark. He flies out to Mayweather's Vegas gym on Sunday for the bulk of his sparring and says he will hit a new peak against Pacquiao when they clash at light - welterweight, live on Sky Box Office.

Mayweather and Hatton have become so close, the legendary trainer even says he would train the Hitman if he ever landed a rematch with his son, Floyd Junior.

"I know Floyd and his son are back talking and there has been all the talk about a rematch between us, which I'd love," Hatton said. "Floyd has said that if Junior does come out of retirement to fight me: 'I'll train Ricky Hatton'.

"That says a lot about how close we are now, even if I do think his suits are shocking!"

William HILL

HATTON v PACQUIAO 8-15 Pacquiao; 11-8 Hatton; 20-1 Draw.

CAPTION(S):

BIG HITTER Hatton with trainer Floyd Mayweather Snr yesterday