By Scott Gilfoid: After beating American Devon Alexander (26-3, 14 KOs) by a careful 12 round unanimous decision last night at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada, Amir Khan (30-3, 19 KOs) is convinced that he’s the best fighter in the welterweight division and that he has the talent to defeat boxing superstar Floyd Mayweather Jr (47-0, 26 KOs) next year.
Khan says his hand speed, which isn’t much more than Mayweather’s, and his fighting style would be enough for him to beat Mayweather. Khan thinks that the boxing fans want to see him fight Mayweather in May despite the fact that few fans are calling for that fight.
The fans want to see Mayweather fight Manny Pacquiao, not Khan. The Mayweather-Pacquiao fight is dynamite. The Khan vs. Mayweather fight would be a case where Khan would leapfrog over arguably more deserving fighters like Kell Brook, Keith Thurman and Danny Garcia.
“Virgil Hunter has made me a more complete fighter,” Khan said. “I don’t stand there to get hit any more. I believe I’m the best fighter in the world. I know the fans want Mayweather-Pacquiao, but I have the style and speed to beat Floyd. If the fight can’t be made for May, I’m sure Oscar will make the right plans for me.”
It really doesn’t matter what Khan thinks.
Mayweather will take the fight that brings him the biggest payday, and that obviously is a fight between him and Pacquiao. Khan still has unfinished business against Danny Garcia and Breidis Prescott. You can add Kell Brook and Keith Thurman’s names to the list of guys that Khan should face in order to earn a shot against Mayweather.
Khan took the easy route to try and get a Mayweather fight by fighting the light hitting Devon Alexander rather than the guys like Brook and Thurman. I mean, Alexander was recently exposed by Shawn Porter, and he’d done nothing since that fight other than beating Jesus Soto-Karass.
The Khan-Alexander fight was little more than a safe fight for Khan, because he and his management had to know that Alexander couldn’t punch his way out of a wet paper bag.
Khan dominated the scorecards in beating Alexander by a 119-109, 118-110 and 120-108. Again, this was a fight that proved little for Khan because Alexander had already been exposed by Porter last year in December, and Alexander never avenged that defeat. Porter did a better job beating Alexander than Khan did.
“The top three guys are Pacquiao, Mayweather and Khan,” Golden Boy Promotions President Oscar De La Hoya said via Fightnews.com. “I know that Mayweather-Pacquiao is the fight the fans want, but I honestly don’t think it’s going to happen. If it doesn’t then Amir is the fight Floyd HAS to make. Where else is he gonna go? Amir’s only getting better.”
If the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight doesn’t take place then Mayweather can always face Brook or Thurman. Those guys have recently come off big wins, and it would be an excellent fight for Mayweather against either of them. As long as Brook is recovered from his knife wound, he’d be a decent test for Mayweather, and it would give Floyd a chance to pick up another belt. A win for Mayweather over Brook would give Mayweather three of the four welterweight titles at 147.
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