By Lukasz Clemans: Unfortunately in the sport of boxing it is too often the case that in the main event of a big fight night there is a clear favourite against a very unlikely winner, regardless of how well known the underdog may be. It is usually the smaller fights which are less predictable such as the fights between two untested and unbeaten potential contenders.
This Saturday Las Vegas hosts a great night of boxing with the main event being a showdown between two fighters who have had their ups and downs in recent years and the result wouldn’t be a surprise to many if it went either way.
This fight is so important for both fighters because a loss for either would resolve in a major setback in their careers which would most likely result in waiting at least another year before fighting another notable contender, which at the age of 27 (Devon Alexander) and 28 (Amir Khan) would not exactly be ideal. The next opponent for the loser after this bout would likely be a recognizable name that is past their prime and a devastating loss, especially for Amir Khan could leave his career in tatters and looking similar to somebody’s like Victor Ortiz. The winner on the other hand will look to capture another world title and could make potential mega-fights against the likes of Floyd Mayweather Jr and Manny Pacquiao.
Amir Khan has always been an interesting figure in boxing since he captured a silver medal at the 2004 Olympics in Athens at the tender age of 17, making him the youngest British boxer to capture an Olympic medal. As he became professional his interest only grew due to him having a fan friendly fighting style due to his exceptional hand speed, decent knockout power and also due to his potential of leaving himself open and getting knocked out as he famously did against huge underdog Breidis Prescott in his 19th professional bout in the very first round. The excitement Amir Khan brings as well as his undeniable talent has helped him make a lot of money throughout his career and helped him being matched up against great fighters.
Even now, after being defeated 3 times in his career and twice emphatically (KO loss to Prescott and KO loss to Garcia) his name is still mentioned as a potential future opponent for Floyd Mayweather despite only displaying one good performance against Luis Collazo since his last loss to the hands of Danny Garcia. This potential match-up is likeable due to Khans super hand speed because Mayweather hasn’t been matched up against quick opponents in the last couple of years as well as Floyd’s business savviness because it is sure to make huge money.
On Saturday night as always khan speed and punching power, in particular his body shots will cause problems for Devon Alexander but likewise as frequent Amir’s ability to take a shot will be a concern for him and his trainer. Luckily for Amir Khan, Devon Alexander is not known as being a power puncher and this is why I see Amir persevering through the fight and ending up a winner via a Unanimous points decision.
It is only Khan’s second fight since moving up weight to the welterweight division after his excellent performance against a solid yet not truly elite fighter in Luis Collazo. This was Khan’s best performance in years and was immediately after Collazo fight against Victor Ortiz in which he so impressively knocked him out in 2 rounds. I believe Amir can be successful at this weight due to him having the talent and still maintaining his ridiculous hand speed which is now even more of an impressive tool at a higher weight class where the hand speed of other fighters are generally slightly slower. The only question is whether Amir will be able to hold his own at this weight in terms of handling bigger punches.
The punches that lead to Khan’s previous two knockout defeats against Prescott and Garcia would have knocked out many elite fighters in the weight classes in and around the welterweight division and he has even shown against Maidana that he is capable of fighting and being hit by big punches and still ending the fight as the victor. What seems to be the main disadvantage to Amir’s game over his chin is his recklessness at times in fights when he gets emotionally carried away and ends in a brawl rather than a boxing match causing him to abandon his defence and leave himself open to power punches.
Alexander is an excellent boxer who has only been defeated by two elite fighters in Tim Bradley and Shawn Porter. He is a boxer who can counter punch and effectively pick off his opponent whilst being difficult to hit like he showed in his flawless performance against Maidana. Even though Maidana has fought Mayweather twice since then he still hasn’t been beaten so easily as he was against Alexander. Maidana is totally different to Khan however and I think due to Maidana’s slow flat footed style he was much better suited to Alexander as I predict he will find it difficult to cope with Amir’s speed and relentlessness.
Overall this fight is as truly a 50/50 fight can be but I do think Khan will beat Alexander on Saturday night and go on to have two mega fights in the next 18 months or so against Kell Brook and Floyd Mayweather. The winner of this fight is going to go in a completely different direction to the loser so there is so much at stake and I cannot wait to tune in and see what happens.
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