Hatton wants to prove himself Stateside

The unbeaten 27-year-old's next fight is against WBA welterweight champion Luis Collazo in Boston on 13 May.

Speaking to the Boston Globe newspaper, HBO Sports programming vice president Kery Davis said: "Ricky Hatton is a huge star in the making.

"We've had our eyes on him for a long time. If there was any boxer we wanted to get our hands on, it was Ricky."

Davis said: "Collazo is a tough challenge for Ricky. He's a slick southpaw who everyone seems to underestimate.

"But if Ricky wins, we foresee matching him against Arturo Gatti and then Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Hatton's team are underestimating me Luis Collazo

"By the end of those three fights, he'll be as big a star in the US as he is in Britain."

Hatton is stepping up a division after claiming the IBF and WBA light-welterweight titles with wins over Kostya Tszyu and Carlos Maussa.

"I had to come to the United States to prove myself," said Hatton. "I fought for a long time in England and a lot of people thought I was a protected fighter."

Collazo, meanwhile, has won 26 of his 27 bouts and will be making the second defence of a title he took with a split decision win over Jose Antonio Rivera.

The New Yorker told www.fightnews.com: "His team are underestimating me.

"They're talking about a Floyd Mayweather fight that will give him recognition as the pound-for-pound best fighter. But he'll find out that at 147lb is a whole different ballgame."