Eisa Al Dah, who was scheduled to fight Ricky Hatton, has broken his silence after the former world champion's tragic death.
On Sunday, it was confirmed that Hatton had passed away at the age of just 46.
A Greater Manchester Police spokesperson said: "Officers were called by a member of the public to attend Bowlacre Road, Hyde, Tameside, at 6:45am today where they found the body of a 46-year-old man. There are not currently believed to be any suspicious circumstances."
During his career, 'The Hitman' had a record of 48 fights, 45 wins and three losses. His three defeats came against Floyd Mayweather, Manny Pacquiao and Vyacheslav Senchenko
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Tributes have since poured in for the former world title holder, with the likes of Tyson Fury, Amir Khan and Anthony Joshua all releasing statements.
Fury wrote: "Rip to the legend @rickyhatton may he rip. There will only ever be 1 Ricky hatton. can't believe this so young."
Hatton, who last fought professionally in 2012, was originally scheduled to fight Al Dah in December.
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Reacting to Hatton's death, Al Dah has now released a statement of his own.
He said to The National: "In just a couple of hours, I was [going to see] him here in Dubai. We booked the hotel. We booked the [plane] ticket. Everything had been arranged.
"From my side, I was checking everything, and I was so excited to see him over here and visit us here in Dubai. And he was also excited. But suddenly, I get this news from his managers. My heart is broken."
Al Dah continued: "Since knowing I will fight him, I became very close to him, seeing his news, following him on Instagram. I follow his life, how he trained, everything. I cannot believe it. I wish somebody told me this is wrong.
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"I've been through many things in my life in the boxing or business. But this is something that I cannot believe."
Topics: Ricky Hatton, Boxing, Boxing News
Marcus Chan