Does criticism of Amir Khan reflect widespread racism in British boxing?

By Kwame Cinquez: Amir Khan’s decision to switch to the United States in order to further his career was lamented in the Guardian newspaper by their chief boxing writer Kevin Mitchell. He was in no doubt as to the reason for Khan’s departure, “the racists here who cat-call him from the cheap seats and spill out their bile anonymously across the internet have a lot to answer for”. To what extent this is true is debatable, but is there a link between race and support, or even success, in boxing in the UK?

On the evidence so far, I for one am not a fan of Amir Khan. His style appears rudimentary, his defence porous, and his lack of chin is a clear target for even the most average of fighters (Breidis Prescott, Willie Limond). Furthermore, his rise to prominence has come with avoiding the better fighters in his weight classes, and his first significant fight, against Marco Antonio Barrera, resulted in what was undoubtedly a fraudulent victory decision in his favour (the result of an accidental headbutt). However, this rise to power is not unusual in boxing. Most, if not all fighters, have padded records and yet the vitriol saved for Khan seems unnecessarily harsh for a young British fighter, silver medallist at the Olympics and still only 23 years of age.

Khan’s ethnicity also distinguishes him from any of his boxing predecessors. His south Asian parentage, alongside his adherence to the Islamic faith, places him in a unique position in the United Kingdom. Unlike many of the fighters from Irish, African/Afro Caribbean and traveler descent, Khan is the first British Pakistani boxer to reach any level of Prominence. It has been noted that his involvement in the sport alone has led to the involvement of many more British children of Pakistani heritage becoming involved in the discipline. So it is perhaps inevitable that race will undoubtedly play a factor in regards to Amir Khan in the United Kingdom. But has Khan been the victim of racism in the UK? Certainly little was made over his arrest for dangerous driving, resulting in his car breaking the leg of an innocent bystander. Khan has multiple commercial endorsements for different prominent companies, so is not suffering in regards to his finances.

Yet the booing that has been heard at many Khan fights suggests he is not universally popular, and the cheering the followed his brutal destruction at the hands of Breidis Prescott could perhaps hint at more than just appreciation a swift first round KO. I for one was delighted at the Khan loss, but more because I felt his ascension has not necessarily been on merit, more on media hype. Perhaps then it would force a more merit based fight for the title. But I apply the same for all fighters, be it Floyd Mayweather, Kelly Pavlik or Roy Jones Jnr. However, in the UK there has been a discrepancy in the way many of the fighters have treated in regards to their ability. Ricky Hatton’s loss to Floyd Mayweather did not bring about anywhere near the same level of internet message board post’s attacking Hatton as there was for Khan in the Prescott fight, despite the fact he was brutally outclassed for much longer and has also benefited from widespread media support and is significantly older than Amir.

Hatton’s ability to galvanise fans, and have them travel in support to his fights in the thousands, is well documented. Many say this is because he is a man they can relate to, and that he is a ‘Man of the people’. Does race play a factor in this? Hatton’s fans being overwhelmingly white, working class males. Could those same Ricky Hatton fans ever cheer on Amir Khan in the same way? Or on the flip side, would the level of support Khan is able to generate from his own Pakistani community ever be replicated for a non-Pakistani fighter? Much of boxer’s ability to draw support stems from their ability to portray themselves as ordinary, decent people from their own communities (Pacquiao/Philippines, Cotto/Puerto Rico are prime examples). Perhaps boxing mirrors how people identify themselves, and racial identity is undoubtedly part of this. Lennox Lewis, Britain’s most recognized fighter in the modern era, never achieved the fame of Hatton, despite being the undisputed Heavyweight champion and the only losses he sustained, he avenged via knockout in rematches. Could race be an attributing factor? One can only speculate, but it is an interesting perspective.

James Degale, a British fighter of mixed raced heritage, has also been a victim of the boo-boys in the UK. Whether or not race can be attributed to the criticism is only speculative. But his Olympic gold medal, and the criticism he has faced from the crowds at his fights, do draw comparison with our last Olympic Heavyweight Gold medalist, Audley Harrison. Long before his defeats at the hands of non-descript fighters, Harrison had been derided for his perceived arrogance and his ‘ego’. Many fans, not unlike during Khan’s loss, celebrated wildly when he received his first loss KO at the hands of Michael Sprott. Harrison certainly thinks was a factor in the criticisms he received, so stating to the guardian newspaper, “People have wanted to stitch me up and deny me any chance of getting on with my career, either as a promoter or a fighter”. I for one was no fan of Audley Harrison as a professional heavyweight, but there is certainly a link between many of the ethnic minority fighters and their perception of the treatment they have received from within the United Kingdom. Stellar fighters such as Prince Naseem Hamed, Junior Witter, Nigel Benn and Chris Eubank long complained of the treatment they received at the hands of both fans and media in the United Kingdom.

Joe Calzaghe, arguably the most recognized British middleweight over the last decade, did not receive the same level of criticism for his opponents post Eubank, or for the issue of fighting both Roy Jones Jnr and Bernard Hopkins (in itself a questionable victory) way past their best and maintained steadfast loyal support in both Wales and in the rest of the UK, resulting in his award for BBC sports personality of the year in 2007. Perhaps being welsh may also have been a contributing factor in this also. I for one admired Calzaghe’s style, but his lack of stellar opponents (many commentators feeling the Jeff lacy fight was his defining moment) for many years was not widely attacked, yet Harrison in the early stages of his career faced slow-claps and boos from his own fan base.

The exception to the rule appears to be that of Frank Bruno. The most popular Black Boxer in the UK’s history, Bruno was able to take thousands of fighters over to the United States whilst maintaining huge commercial deals in the UK. The irony is that those very commercial deals that made him famous were the very deals that alienated him from many of the supporters from within the black community. In reversal to many of his fights against African American or Afro-British fighters, many British Blacks did not support Bruno. His national hero was less for his boxing ability than for being a good sport, and his manic appearances, alongside his play-up of his personality, left many black people uncomfortable with how Bruno, one of the few iconic faces, was portraying himself to a national audience. Whereas Bruno had overwhelming white support in the UK for his battles against Tyson and McCall, it was the complete reversal within the minority Black community. Bruno often spoke against the hurt he felt over the alleged ‘Uncle Tom’ allegations thrown at him, but again it speaks volumes for race and relations within the United Kingdom. The same allegation had indeed been put to Amir Khan and many of the promotional work he had done by sections of the Asian community in the UK. It appears that, whatever the intention, a certain community is to be offended. You simply cannot please everybody.

To conclude, the argument as to whether racism is truly endemic in sport can never be comprehensively answered within this short article. Different perspectives can undoubtedly be understood, depending on the position adopted. What is without doubt however, is that there is a perception from within ethnic minorities that in order to succeed they have to somehow prove their authenticity as a British athlete, whereby for white athletes it is taken as a given. There will always be contradictions to this, such as Carl Froch or David Haye. But this is a popular view that transcends boxing. How accurate this view is, will undoubtedly provide food for thought.

40 Responses to “Does criticism of Amir Khan reflect widespread racism in British boxing?”