Why is Hatton placing so much emphasis on being a 'new fighter'?

[Sutekh uvdabrix]

They aren't changing him into a boxer. They're changing him to be a smarter pressure fighter who uses head movement, puts better combinations together, jabs his way in, better defense, etc.

A la hagler

[Pullcounter]

he's gonna try to be a boxer for about 2 rounds...but when he realizes that he's getting beat to every punch, he'll revert back to his old style

this is true... hatton thinks he can box w/ pac, but he will revert to grappling

[talip bin osman]

When surely the style best suited to beating Pacquiao would be his old, mauling self

He's not gonna outbox Pacman, and he doesn't have to ability to become a great technician... And the phrase "you can't teach an old dog new tricks" would probably apply to this situation too

If he goes in there in two minds about how to fight or doesn't play to his strengths, he'll get KTFO even quicker!

I understand there could be an element of mind-games to his comments, but it just sounds to me like he's not approaching this fight in the right way

What are your thoughts on the whole Hatton becoming a "boxer" thing?

bcoz the graham trained hatton will be less competetive with MP... i think...

[koboy]

I think his new style will throw Manny off a bit until Manny adjust to it. How long? Ricky is hoping that it is long enough that he can surprise Manny with some hard shots before he is figured out.

I think this is his best chance to catch Manny because his old style is just too predictable. He only knows one way to fight and that's to bullrush people. Roach knows this and this is what he is training Manny for. I think it's smart to give him a different look to make Manny think a bit more.

The real question is, will he revert back to the old Ricky once his "new style" fails or when Manny tags him. I think he will. Bad news for him and Floyd Sr. There are some hints of this with his fight with Paulie. He threw a couple more jabs than usual, but when Paulie countered him, the first thing he did was rush in. Boom, Paulie catches him flush with a straight right every time.

Ricky needs to be a "new fighter" and be able to stick to it to be successful with Pacman. Or else, it will be an early night.