LONDON - British welterweight Ricky Hatton has rejected an approach for a September bout against Oscar De La Hoya.
"It would be too soon, Richard only fought two weeks ago," Ray Hatton, the boxing champion's father and manager, told BBC Sport. "Oscar likes to fight in September because of Mexican Independence Day, but Richard is chilling out at the moment."
Hatton beat Juan Lazcano on May 24 to retain his IBO light welterweight title and is not expected to fight again until November.
De La Hoya's scheduled Sept. 20 bout against Floyd Mayweather was cancelled after Mayweather retired last week.
However, Hatton is hoping Mayweather will come out of retirement because he wants a chance to avenge a loss last December in a WBC welterweight title match. It was Hatton's first loss in 44 fights.
"Obviously, Richard would have liked to have gone over that ground again because he thinks he never gave it his best shot in the first fight," Ray Hatton said. "And you can never say never with Floyd, maybe if the money was there in 12 months he would change his mind."