By Ronnie Nathanielsz

RICKY Hatton?s British trainer Lee Beard said the International Boxing Organization light welterweight champion is in great shape this early in preparation for his showdown with Manny Pacquiao at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on May 2.

In an overseas telephone conversation with www.insidesports.ph, Standard Today and Viva Sports, Beard said Hatton?s training was ?coming along very well and he is in really good shape.?

Asked about Hatton?s weight because of his tendency to bloat in-between fights, Beard said they hadn?t actually weighed him as yet but his body was in fine shape. ?There?s not been too much time between the last fight [against Paulie Malignaggi last Nov. 22] and this fight [against Pacquiao].?

Beard said they plan to check Hatton?s weight on Friday. ?He took his shirt off and his six-pack abs [ripped abdominal muscles with no fat] are there already and he?s in really good shape and his fitness is very, very good, too.?

The trainer said Hatton would probably have a couple of light sparring sessions during training at Ashton, which is just outside his hometown of Manchester to get his timing and movement.

?But once we get to Vegas, that?s when all his hard sparring will start. There?s nobody in England that can get anywhere near what Manny does so it?s a bit of a lost cause.?