Amir Khan v Marcos Maidana hangs in the balance
As a boxing fan sometimes you can be tantalisingly close to a big fight only to have it snatched away at the last moment.
So far this year there has been disappointment with Manny Pacquiao v Floyd Mayweather and Wladimir Klitschko v David Haye contests both collapsing. So it was a welcome change to hear that a nice little treat is on its way in the form of the much heralded Amir Khan v Marcos Maidana mandatory WBA light-welterweight clash.
It’s a fight a lot of people would like to see. Right now in the highly competitive light-welterweight division Maidana and Khan are shining lights along side Devon Alexander and Timothy Bradley Jnr and the four of them clashing in any order is a dream prospect for fight fans.
At the moment it hangs in the balance. There are reports it’s a done deal, other reports suggest Maidana is demanding too much money. It looks likely this fight will happen though, with Khan posting on his twitter account that he is planning to knockout “Madonna” and saying on Sky Sports News yesterday that the deal was 99% done.
It’s great to see Khan stepping up to Maidana. There was the worry that he might become so marketable they could handpick his career for himself to the extent that he will just need to show up. The biggest criticism Khan gets is that he has a week chin with a lot of experts and fans still highly suspect of his jaw. The likes of Willie Limond, Michael Gomez and Breidis Prescott have all dropped Khan, the Columbian of course knocking him out in a mere 54 seconds.
However Freddie Roach has worked hard on Khan’s defence and, while he hasn’t been properly tested, he looks sharper when protecting himself. The ultimate test is Maidana, he is the knockout king of this division with a card showing 27 KO’s of his 29 victories, if Khan can avoid being put to sleep against him it will be one in the eye for all his critics.
Khan will take comfort in the fact that Maidana’s sole loss come at the hands of Andriy Kotelnik, who the Bolton pugilist beat to pick up his WBA title, but it’s how he stands up against the Argentinian’s power that is going to be the focal point of interest.
The fight looks set to take place on December 11th, most likely in Detroit. “Motor City” has been the home to many a fine fighter, most notably Tommy Hearns and the Kronk gym mob and has boxing flowing through its veins. At first Khan was looking at England for the venue but the likes of MEN Arena and the O2 are booked up and now he seems set to take it stateside. Having the fight in the US is another chance to showcase his skills to the huge American audience, while Golden Boy promotions Richard Schaefer feels it will be ideal because Detroit boasts a large Muslim population who will turn out in full force to support the Olympic silver medallist.
If it all comes off then the fight will be three days after Khan’s 24th birthday, what better gift could the WBA champ have than finally ending any doubt about his chin.
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