Amir Khan's Meeting with Devon Alexander Is a Must-Win for King Khan
Amir Khan knows that when he stands toe-to-toe with Devon Alexander on Dec. 13 in Las Vegas, he must deliver a big victory in order to prevent a promising career from stalling.
The Briton (29-3, 19 KOs) comes into the match off the back of three straight victories since suffering a devastating fourth-round knockout to Danny Garcia. He faces arguably his toughest task since then, as he continues to pursue a career-defining bout with pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather.
A fight with Alexander has been long in waiting, with Khan pulling out of a scheduled meeting last December—following less than impressive victories over Carlos Molina and Julio Diaz—in the hope that he would be worthy of a shot at Mayweather the following May.
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Past attempts to organise a showdown with Mayweather have fallen by the wayside, with the sport's leading name instead twice opting for bouts with former Khan victim Marcos Maidana.
A 13-month layoff followed for the 2004 Olympic silver medalist before returning stateside back in May to outpoint Luis Collazo. That was his most impressive performance since relinquishing his World Boxing Association Super Light Welterweight title to the unbeaten Garcia.
While the idea of an all-British superfight with newly crowned International Boxing Federation welterweight titleholder Kell Brook at Wembley Stadium has been floated, Khan has instead opted for the glitz and glamour now synonymous with the Las Vegas strip and a dust-up with former IBF strap-holder Alexander. The winner would be a likely front-runner to oppose Mayweather in May.
Alexander boasts a 26-2 record with 14 KOs and losses only to Timothy Bradley and Shawn Porter, which outline that Khan will have to bring his A-game in order to overcome the Missouri southpaw. While punch power could prove an issue—with Alexander stopping only Britain's Lee Purdy since a 2010 TKO of Juan Urango—the American can nonetheless exploit Khan's habit of leaving himself open to cause some serious problems.
Khan's lightning-fast hand speed and quick feet make him a dangerous opponent. However, his bouts frequently offer an additional excitement factor for fans due to his vulnerability. Knockout losses to Breidis Prescott and Danny Garcia, as well as an early knockdown at the hands of Julio Diaz, highlight an area of concern for Khan—a vice he would certainly have to shake off if a fight with Mayweather ever materialises.
While the Prescott defeat hurt the Bolton man, it was the loss to Danny Garcia that provided the real setback to Khan's career.
Having picked himself up from a brutal KO to the Colombian, King Khan put together eight successive victories over the likes of Marco Antonio Barrera, Paulie Malignaggi, Maidana and Zab Judah, picking up the WBA and IBF light welterweight titles along the way.
Khan was on the wrong side of a controversial split decision with Lamont Peterson before a crushing defeat to the unbeaten Garcia. A split from trainer Freddie Roach shortly followed to see him reach the lowest ebb of his career.
Playing the bridesmaid to Manny Pacquiao at the Wild Card didn't sit well with Khan despite the elite sparring he was enjoying. He opted to abdicate to Virgil Hunter's stable to instead play second fiddle to Andre Ward. Uninspiring matchups since his new partnership have been matched by some equally uninspiring performances that offer no real surprises as to why he was overlooked twice by Mayweather.
Victory over Alexander would do wonders for restoring a sense of lost credibility for Khan, as he attempts to deliver on a career that offered so much early promise. As it stands, he's ranked ninth in The Ring magazine's welterweight rankings, one place ahead of Alexander but behind plenty of others who would argue their case to be the 48th name to attempt to take Mayweather's undefeated mark.
Mayweather's apparent willingness to fight in Britain leaves Khan as the front-runner for any such square-off, with his higher profile and box-office draw more likely to attract the man they call Money than the prospect of Kell Brook's IBF strap.
Speaking about the prospect of a trans-Atlantic bout back in June, Mayweather told The Sun (h/t ESPN):
"It's been a goal to come to the UK and put on a spectacular event and the plan is to do just that. I love all my fans in the UK and I want to go there and give a good show at Wembley before I retire. I plan to come in the near future. I want to continue to make history with the mega events we put on.
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Any bout between the pair would inevitably sell out without trouble, and Khan could provide the top man in the sport with a more entertaining bout than we're used to seeing.
The prospect though—and it is still only a prospect after all—relies on Khan coming through a tough test in Alexander. A fourth career loss would almost certainly scupper any hopes of making a mark on Floyd's glittering career and, more importantly, offer a shattering setback for Khan in his quest to be mentioned in the same breath as the top men in boxing's elite division.
There are plenty of other options available to the 27-year-old if the Mayweather fight did fail to come to fruition, but again, any attractive proposition would more than likely rely on victory over Alexander. For British fans especially, the prospect of two domestic fighters dueling for Brook's IBF title would be top of the list. Brook captured the strap formerly held by Alexander after upsetting the odds to earn a majority decision over Shawn Porter in California.
While offering another domestic superfight to follow in the footsteps of this year's Wembley contest between Carl Froch and George Groves, Khan would be offered his easiest possible route to a World title. World Boxing Organization champion and former stablemate Manny Pacquiao also is likely to pursue Mayweather following his November showdown with Chris Algieri.
The prospect of defending his title against Khan would certainly appeal to Brook, whose style could be well suited to picking faults in Khan's defensive lapses in concentration. The Sheffield man chased a matchup with his domestic foe for a long time, and a title of his own now makes him a much more attractive proposition for Khan, who highlighted his intentions following Brook's victory over Porter.
Khan himself knows the risk that lies ahead in former IBF champion Alexander, outlining the importance of an all-or-nothing bout that could leave his career in limbo as he pointed out in a piece by ESPN.com's Dan Rafael:
"I look at this as a make-or-break fight for me. I am focused 100 percent on this fight. Mayweather is motivation for me, makes me work harder, but my main goal is to get past this fight.
If I win this fight it will take me on to bigger and better things. This is a statement fight for me and if I beat Alexander, then I believe I have secured my position in a superfight, but it's all about winning this fight and looking good.
I feel like my style, with speed, power, hand and foot movement, would give someone like Floyd Mayweather problems. Floyd's a great fighter, but first we have to look good and shine against Alexander and then I think the fight with Floyd will be secured.
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Victory over Alexander would be the first huge step for Khan in rebuilding a career haunted by his shattering defeat to Danny Garcia. Mayweather aside, The Ring magazine's welterweight rankings throw up plenty of exciting and competitive fights in Robert Guerrero, Brook, Bradley and Maidana to name but a few. But it's sink-or-swim time for Khan. If he gets past Alexander, his partnership with Oscar De La Hoya's Golden Boy Promotions could open plenty of lucrative doors in his aspiration to rediscover former glories. Defeat, however, could see the Brit faced with a mountain just a little too tall to climb.
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