By Jason Kim: With his impressive performance in defeating WBA light welterweight champion Andry Kotelnik last weekend, Britain’s Amir Khan is looking to conquer new territory and is hoping to branch out and start fighting in the United States where he hopes to win new fans. It’s a smart move if Khan, 22, can pull it off because if he’s able to become a success in the U.S., it will mean much bigger chances for mega fights for the former Olympic Silver Medalist.
Khan won’t be able to do it alone and will need to seek out top level opponents to fight for him to become a star in the U.S. As of yet, Khan hasn’t exactly faced the best of opposition since turning pro in 2005, and he will need to be pushed into facing better opponents if he wants to impress American audiences.
The victory over Kotelnik, considered to be a good but not great opponent, won’t make a dent in making a name for Khan because this appears to be an opponent that was hand picked by Khan and his team. Additionally, Khan’s mandatory challenger for his newly won WBA title, Dimitry Salita, won’t do much for Khan either.
The British star is going to have to get out of his comfort zone and start stepping up against better fighters to cut through the American market. HBO likes Marcos Maidana, the hard punching Argentinean knockout artist that recently destroyed Victor Ortiz in a 6th round stoppage in June. That would be an opponent that Khan should be seeking out if he wants to make a name for himself.
Khan can’t continue to fight opponents like Oisin Fagan, Martin Kristjansen and older fighters like Marco Antonio Barrera if he wants to get better. American audiences can smell a fake and if Khan tries to sneak by with facing soft touches, he’s going nowhere fast.
Khan will have to take on some top talent, and I’m not referring to Ricky Hatton. Khan will need someone that hasn’t been recently beaten by someone else for him to get the kind of attention he’s looking for.
Khan’s style of fighting is also going to have to have an overhaul done on it. His trainer, Freddie Roach, has turned him into a pure boxer and has curbed his tendencies to slug with his opponents. The new style of fighting, which uses a lot of movement, worked against Kotelnik last Saturday night, but it was painfully boring to watch.
With boxing competing with more action packed sports like MMA, the American audiences and the cable networks might not be too interested in seeing another fighter who runs around the ring for 12 rounds, avoiding exchanges and focusing more on throwing jabs.
Those types of fighters are a dime a dozen in the U.S. and not appealing to watch because of their safety first style of fighting. As of now, Khan looks to be morphing into one of these fighters with the help of trainer Roach. Khan might find success with that style in winning fights, but I hardly think that style will hold interest for American audiences.
Comments are closed.