By William Mackay: If Floyd Mayweather Jr. is looking for an opponent to fight next on March 13th, one that will steal away much of the thunder from the Manny Pacquiao vs. Joshua Clottey bout, which will be taking place on the same night, why doesn’t Mayweather go after World Boxing Association light welterweight champion Amir Khan (22-1, 16 KO’s) next? That fight makes the most sense to me.
Mayweather isn’t too keen on fighting bigger opponents than him, and Khan, although technically taller than Mayweather at 5’10” compared to 5’8” Floyd, has the smaller frame than Mayweather. This fight would come down to speed vs. speed. It would be the perfect fight for Khan, because it would make a huge name for him in the United States, which is what he wants, while at the same time give him a huge payday.
That’s something he also no doubt wants. But another added value is that Khan wouldn’t have to bother facing the murderous knockout puncher WBA light welterweight interim champion Marcos Maidana, who the WBA has ordered Khan to fight. Khan would have the perfect excuse to vacate his title. Who in their right mind would blame Khan for wanting to vacate his title for the honor and the prestige of fighting Mayweather?
I know Khan would like to wait awhile before facing the likes of Mayweather, but sometime you have to man up and take your training wheels off a little earlier than you’d like. Ideally, it would be better for Khan to face Mayweather in a year or three, but who knows what the future will bring. Khan could get destroyed by Maidana in his next fight, and his market value would likely plummet with that loss.
Also, Mayweather could decide to retire again after making a bundle. If Mayweather offers the fight to Khan, I think Amir would be crazy to turn it down. No one would blame him if he loses to Mayweather. Khan is only 23, and no matter what happens, he’ll come out of this looking good.
If Mayweather wants to get a lot of attention, he needs a big named opponent like Khan to get it. At the same time, Floyd could be getting back at trainer Freddie Roach, who trains both Khan and Manny Pacquiao. What better way to get even than to fight and beat a Roach trained fighter and sap away the attention that the Pacquiao-Clottey fight gets on the same night.
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