Amir Khan insists the widely-touted fight between him and Floyd Mayweather Jnr will happen – though his next showdown could be against Manny Pacquiao.
Khan was close to a shot at Mayweather earlier in the year but the American opted to fight Marcos Maidana at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas instead.
Before the pound-for-pound king extended his unbeaten record against Maidana, Khan showed his class with an impressive victory over Luis Collazo on Mayweather’s undercard.
That victory has put Khan back in the hunt for a showdown with Mayweather but such a date with destiny will have to wait until next May as Khan will be observing Ramadan when the American plans to next step into the ring.
In the meantime Khan hopes a deal can be agreed to fight Pacquiao in November or December.
“We want to fight the big guys the top names in boxing,” Khan told Ringside. “The next time that I want to fight is around November or December. Ramadan is coming up so I am going to spend time at home and enjoy that month.
Talks
“I am looking at the likes of Marquez and Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather – they are the big names and that is where I belong fighting the top guys. There are talks about Manny Pacquiao happening in the future – may be next. So I have left my team, Al Hayman and my team Khan Promotions to do everything.
“The fight between me and Floyd Mayweather is going to happen one day. As long as I keep winning and putting on great performances, it is definitely going to happen. But I cannot do September because of Ramadan. The next time that it could happen is in May. I can fight then so it could be Floyd’s next fight after September.”
Khan’s fight against Collazo was his first bout at the full welterweight limit and his first contest for over a year.
The move up in weight was just one of a number of recent changes for Khan, including linking up with trainer Virgil Hunter and signing a deal with Mayweather’s promoter Al Haymon. And in four weeks ago he became a father for the first time.
Father
All of which he is relishing, and he credits the guidance of Hunter a major factor in his recent progress in the ring.
“It is a new chapter in my life having the baby and then moving up to 147 in the boxing – a new weight category for me, with new challenges out there for me,” he said.
“I am spending more time in the gym now. I am learning every time I am there and I am spending more time with Virgil. I am getting to know him on a personal level and building that relationship up.
“I am getting more sparring in and more pad work in with him. He is telling me what to do and what not to do, and watching a lot of videos with him, which helps. I see the mistakes I make that way.
“With Virgil he makes sure that you register what he is saying and he wants you to talk back to him. So I know what to do in there. What I like about him most of all is that he is very calm in the gym but very smart in the way that if he starts to shout then you know you’ve done something wrong.”
“He tells me how it is and doesn’t lie to me. I needed someone like him.”
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