Illness prevented Ricky Hatton appearing at a Las Vegas press conference to promote his showdown with Paulie Malignaggi.
Malignaggi has stage all to himself in Las Vegas
Ricky Hatton failed to attend a press conference in Las Vegas to officially announce his IBF light-welterweight showdown with Paulie Malignaggi.
The Manchester fighter, who is in Las Vegas making early preparations for the November 22 bout, was feeling unwell.
"We don't know what the problem is," said Hatton's lawyer Gareth Williams.
"We came in last night, had some food, and then he got sick. When he's eating burger, chips and beer, he's fine."
However, the pride of Manchester felt well enough to take his place at ringside later in the evening for the clash between Juan Manuel Marquez and Joel Casamayor.
Williams insisted Hatton - who enjoys eating and drinking but maintains a strict diet during pre-fight training - was not suffering from a hangover.
Lemonade
Malignaggi's promoter Lou DiBella said: "He was drinking lemonade last night when I saw him.
"No matter how sick Ricky feels right now, he is going to feel a lot sicker on November 22."
After an MGM Grand Garden Arena representative confirmed at least 12,000 tickets have been sold with more than two months to go until the fight, DiBella admitted he was delighted to have Malignaggi involved in such a high-profile event.
"Hatton is a phenomenon; he is a money machine," he added.
"We're grateful for this opportunity in front of the British fans, who are the best fight fans in the world."
"I am thrilled that Paulie will be able to achieve superstardom when he fights Ricky, one of the world's most popular and accomplished fighters.
"Both are completely different fighters with completely different styles, but one thing that is the same is that they both have the heart of a lion."
It also emerged that the contest may not be for Malignaggi's IBF title, as Hatton is not the mandatory challenger.
"This is the biggest fight of my career, and I live for these opportunities," said Malignaggi.
"The best always comes out of me for moments like this. And this moment can't get any bigger."
