By Norman Marshall: World Boxing Association (WBA ) light welter weight champion Amir Khan deserves praise for the way he withstood the constant pressing and attacking of Marcos Maidana. Khan showed heart and ability to tough it out when he had to.

The problem though, is that although Maidana was tough and strong, his attacks lacked guile and were rarely set up in combinations. At times Amir looked flustered and pressured. I believe the reason for this is that Amir has a gap in his repertoire. Khan relies on footwork and blocking alone when put under pressure. There is a distinct lack of head movement. The head only really moves when the feet get him away from trouble. This creates the impression of an urgent, over eagerness to distance himself from meaningful attacks.

When caught or trapped, Amir tends to stop moving and just cover up with a high guard. Against Alexander or Bradley, some slightly more educated pressure and variety of punches could be tough to cope with. As it was, Maidana found a home for a short uppercut through the middle on several occasions. There did not seem to be much effort spent in parrying punches, if it was done at any time at all.

This slightly passive mode of defence by Khan can be traced back to the Breidis Prescott disaster. Khan is unable to relax when standing within punching range of an opponent, therefore feels compelled to move, move, move or throw flurries of punches without being able to set himself for power punches as the fight progresses.

The real gap in his defensive tools lies in his inability to stand within range and slip punches. The opportunities for him to counter are reduced because of this.

The other problem with his blend of defensive strategies is that it gives a strong opponent confidence. He can see Amir on his bike and can press forwards, creating momentum. As Khan gets stuck the opponent has got something to hit, even if it is mostly gloves. The feeling of connecting with punches gives a fighter confidence and self belief that he can still take Amir out with the right connection. Fast, effective, combination punching against this blocking defence, will eventually find openings.

Maidana’s self belief may well have been more dented had he found himself hitting not much at all and getting stung in return for his efforts.
Khan is gifted and has the grit. However, he will find himself in tough fights from here on out. His defensive strategy relies on supreme fitness and youth. A little more defensive guile will make life easier, frustrate opposition instead of encouraging them and crucially add longevity to his career.