By Scott Gilfoid: Well, I’m going to go out on the limb with my prediction on the tonight’s big Las Vegas fight and choose IBF light welterweight champion Zab Judah (41-6, 28 KO’s) over WBA light welterweight champion Amir Khan (25-1, 17 KO’s) by a brutal 8th round knockout that leaves Khan flat on his back counting stars floating around above head.

I’ve weighed all the variables in this fight in terms of speed, power, boxing ability and experience, and I can’t see any other option other than Khan getting exposed again. If you look at how Khan has been matched since his 1st round knockout loss to Breidis Prescott in 2008, you’ll see that he’s been pretty much protected and steered around the dangerous threats. He’s fought largely weak punchers and the only guy that he fought that could punch with any kind of power, Marcos Maidana, had Khan on the verge of a knockout last year.

I still think Maidana would have knocked Khan out had there been a different referee working that fight. That win, in my view, is more of a loss than any kind of win. As such, I’ve put a mental asterisk in front of it and don’t see that as a win. But you take that fight out and you’ll notice that Khan has been guided against weak punchers over and over again. Tonight, that trend is going to be interrupted when Khan is put in with the powerful and fast 33-year-old Judah.

Khan’s people are taking a big risk here by putting him in with someone that can actually punch his way out of a wet paper bag, but they obviously think that Judah is past his prime, otherwise they wouldn’t put Khan anywhere near him. You’ll notice that they’re not trying to put Khan in with puncher Lucas Matthysse, who really should be still unbeaten after losing two controversial decisions to Judah and then Devon Alexander. Matthysse is the fighter that Khan should be matched against, but Matthysse can punch and is like a better version of Maidana.

No way was Khan going to be put in with another Maidana, because Khan dodged a bullet with his “win” over Maidana last time. The last thing that Khan’s management needs is to put him in with a better Maidana type fighter and seeing their hyped fighter get knocked cold before a cash out fight against Floyd Mayweather Jr next year. But I don’t see them being able to cash out with Khan, because even though Judah is depleted from his punishing fights in the past against Miguel Cotto, Kostya Tszyu, Joshua Clottey and Mayweather, I still see Judah having more than enough skills to beat the horribly flawed Khan.

Judah will expose Khan as a hype tonight and show the world what true skills are. It’s a good thing because it’s always better for the boxing public to get the real goods instead of hype. I’d rather see Khan picked off now than seeing him move forward and totally dominated and made to look like a rank amateur next year by Mayweather.