Danny Garcia vs. Amir Khan: The Aftermath

By Boxing News - 07/16/2012 - Comments

Image: Danny Garcia vs. Amir Khan: The Aftermath(Photo: Sumio Yamada) By Simon Hirst: WBC light-welterweight champion Danny Garcia took on the WBA light-welterweight champion Amir Khan in what was a unification in the division. Khan had not long regained his status as WBA champion after losing it in his previous fight, but regaining it after Peterson failed a drugs test.

The fight had turned from what seemed a bout that seemed average on paper to a real rivalry with both camps promising KO wins. It seemed that Garcia’s camp got inside Khan’s head more than the other way round as Garcia seemed amused by the situation, whilst focused on the task at hand.

From the first bell, Amir Khan dominated the fight, catching Garcia with excellent eye-catching punches whilst Garcia’s punches were just that half second too slow. This continued in the second round, although Garcia was getting closer. Garcia suffered a cut above his eye, but his corner seemed to do a good job on it not to allow it to become a major factor. The third round was going all for Khan yet again until he left his chin exposed and was caught on the neck through to his chin with an absolute thumping left hook. Credit to Khan for getting up as it would have knocked most out. Khan’s jelly legs returned from the Prescott fight, but as in that fight, the fight was allowed to continue and perhaps whilst some would slate referee Kenny Bayliss for not stopping it there, Khan somehow survived, albeit on wobbly legs.

Danny Garcia exploded into round four, not letting Khan rest and knocked him down with a cuffing shot. Khan was allowed to continue and actually threw some good shots back, but these proved in vein as he had not recovered and could not keep Garcia at bay. Garcia landed two excellent punches, putting Khan down again. Khan stumbled up, walking backwards for support of the ropes. Bayliss had a look and waved the fight off, handing Garcia a very famous win and Khan his second stoppage loss.

Danny Garcia looked very good in this fight, although I wouldn’t say stunning. He proved he has a superb chin, can handle pressure, listen to his corner and punch relatively hard. However, on the flip side, he proved he can be out boxed and slow to land punches. If there was a fighter he could be compared to, perhaps Carl Froch would spring to mind. His future is bright, with an undefeated record and two championship belts; he is the number one of the division. Who does he fight next? Zab Judah’s name has been mentioned, although Maidana, Matthysse, Marquez and even a Khan rematch may be considered.

The question for Khan seems can he come back from this and the answer is of course. Much lesser fights have come back so there is no reason why Khan can’t do the same. However, he has a number of obstacles to overcome if he is to reach his very best. First of all, his training camps seem to be here, there and everywhere from Bolton to L.A to the Philippines. He needs a stable camp where someone dedicated can work with him and work on his weaknesses and strengths. Secondly, he needs to stop this machismo attitude. It was this that led to the Prescott disaster and this unfortunately has been coming. His legs looked light again and couldn’t cope with the shots he was caught with. He needs to go back to what he is good at, boxing. He is lightning quick hands, superb at shot picking and if he could work on his stamina to maintain this over twelve rounds, he would be a tough cookie. His defence against pressure needs to be worked on also.

Another major factor is Khan needs to work on his attitude. He was easily goaded into a war of words and whilst they sell fights, they certainly don’t win them. Even after the fight, although respect of the decision, was easily goaded into some comments in reaction to a few words from Froch, claiming he has had a harder run of opponents and is a bigger name. This is debatable, with Froch losing less, fighting harder opponents and winning a huge audience over Europe and America. The point however is Khan should not have been goaded into retaliating, even if he felt Khan was in the wrong over the comments. He needs to stop talking and prove himself all over again.

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