By Danny Duffy: On December 11th 2010, WBA light-welterweight champion Amir Khan 23-1 (17) will finally step into the ring with the explosive power puncher Marcos Rene Maidana 29-1 (27). For any boxer, the prospect of facing a puncher as prolific as Maidana is a daunting one; it is difficult to settle into any kind of rhythm with the knowledge that the next punch from your opponent could be the one that puts you into a coma. 23 year old Khan has more to worry about than most.
Even before Khan was brutally stopped in 54 seconds by B level puncher Breidis Prescott 23-2 (19) back in 2008, his punch resistance had been questioned. In fact, he had been floored three times by light hitters, including the feather-fisted Willie Limond 33-3 (8) who momentarily thereafter had him in some trouble. You don’t have to hit like Earnie Shavers to put Amir Khan to sleep. Since that infamous loss, Khan has been matched with light hitters, including mouthy New Yorker Paul Malinaggi 27-4 (5) who would do well to punch his way out of a wet paper bag.
Maidana, 27, has a 90% knockout percentage, and left Ukrainian Andriy Kotelnik 34-4-1 (13) – his only professional loss to date, albeit via a controversial split decision – looking battered and bruised. Victor Ortiz 28-2-1 (22) found out how hard the Argentinean hits when they met in June 2009 – he was taken out inside a brutal six rounds. Maidana might not be the best pugilist on the planet, but he sure can bang.
Sure, Khan is the superior boxer of the two, and if the fight goes the distance, he should win by a fairly comfortable margin. But all it takes in one well placed, well timed punch from the interim champion and the full WBA title will be his. Good luck to Khan, and I mean that; but I just can’t see him surviving the full twelve rounds. Somewhere in those 36 minutes, no matter how fast Khan runs, Maidana will surely find his target… then it will be a case of ‘goodnight, Mr. Khan, see you next week.’
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