Ranking the 5 Biggest Wins of Amir Khan's Professional Career to Date

He may have a youthful appearance, but Amir Khan has now hit the ripe old age of 29.

Khan hardly seems to have changed much from the fresh-faced teenager who burst onto the boxing scene by claiming a silver medal at the 2004 Olympics in Athens.

However, the fighter from Bolton, England, has achieved plenty since turning pro in 2005.

A world champion at junior lightweight, Khan boasts a 31-3 (19 KOs) record.

His career has had some ups and downs, including tough defeats at the hands of Breidis Prescott, Lamont Peterson and Danny Garcia. But this slideshow isn't about picking over the disappointments.

Instead, to celebrate his birthday on December 8, Bleacher Report presents the five biggest wins of his career so far.

Honourable Mentions

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It is easy to forget just how long Khan has been around.

Among his list of victims are: Zab Judah, Luis Collazo, Julio Diaz and, most recently, Chris Algieri.

Before reaching world level, Khan also defeated some solid domestic fighters.

He recovered from being knocked down to force Willie Limond to retire at the end of Round 8 in 2007, in doing so becoming the new Commonwealth champion at lightweight.

There were also victories over Graham Earl and Michael Gomez, both experienced pros who proved to be stepping stones for Khan on his route to winning world titles.

However, none of the above made the list. 

Just to add, the selection criteria wasn't based solely on performance. This wasn't about picking Khan's greatest knockouts.

A degree of importance had to be placed on each victory, taking into consideration the time they occurred in Khan's career, the opponent he was facing and also the significance of the outcome.

5. Amir Khan vs. Paulie Malignaggi (May 15, 2010)

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Fresh off a rapid demolition of Dmitriy Salita on home turf, Khan travelled to the famous Madison Square Garden, New York, to make his American debut in 2010.

Paulie Malignaggi was an experienced opponent—he had taken Miguel Angel Cotto the distance in 2006, while Ricky Hatton had needed 11 rounds to get rid of him in 2008.

Khan, though, rose to the occasion in the Big Apple. 

His speed and accuracy proved too much for the feather-fisted Malignaggi to cope with. The New Yorker had to beg the ringside doctor just to be allowed to continue after Round 10.

The bout did carry on—but not for much longer. After Khan continued to dominate, referee Steve Smoger stepped in to call a halt to proceedings midway through the 11th.

Michael Woods of ESPN was certainly impressed by the victorious Khan:

"

Fight fans didn't know whether Amir Khan was an A-level talent coming into the main event at The Theater at Madison Square Garden on Saturday night.

But after a couple rounds of taking in Khan's considerable power, hand speed, work rate and beyond-his-years poise, everyone watching had to be of the same mind: Khan, who nabbed a technical knockout in the 11th round, is indeed a top-level fighter and would be a steep challenge for anyone in the 140-pound class.

"

4. Amir Khan vs. Marco Antonio Barrera (March 14, 2009)

Marco Antonio Barrera was, admittedly, past his prime when he stepped into the ring to face Khan.

However, at 35, he still offered a sizeable challenge for the home favourite to deal with at the M.E.N Arena in Manchester, England.

The Mexican had lasted 12 rounds with Juan Manuel Marquez and Manny Pacquiao in 2007, while he was then ranked as leading contender for the former's WBO lightweight title.

Khan, meanwhile, was looking to rebuild his reputation after the shock loss he suffered against the heavy-handed Breidis Prescott.

With a new trainer in Freddie Roach, Khan returned to the scene of his worst nightmare to take on a modern-day legend.

Once the first bell rang, it quickly became clear there were no mental scars from that Prescott loss. As Gareth A Davies stated in his fight report for the Telegraph: "Khan was simply too much for the old warrior. "

The only disappointment for Khan was that he was unable to finish the job himself.

An early clash of heads saw Barrera cut on his forehead, impairing his vision out of his left eye. By Round 5, the damage was too severe for the veteran to continue.

The fight was stopped and Khan could celebrate. Next stop: A world-title shot.

3. Amir Khan vs. Andriy Kotelnik (July 18, 2009)

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After beating Marco Antonio Barrera, Khan moved up to challenge for the WBA super lightweight title in 2009.

Andriy Kotelnik was the reigning champion, having picked up the belt by beating Welshman Gavin Rees the previous year.

A counter puncher, the Ukrainian had successfully defended the title twice since, defeating both Norio Kimura and Marcos Maidana on points. However, his time at the top came to an end in Manchester, England.

Khan proved he had the stamina to go with his skills, boxing the majority of the fight at long range to win by a landslide on the scorecards.

So emphatic was his display, one of the three ringside judges gave him every round. The other two both scored it 118-111 in Khan's favour.

Jamie Jackson opened his fight report for the Observer by writing:

"

An evening billled as the 'Man who would be King' ended in supreme and deserved ecstasy for the prospective new member of fight-game royalty, Amir Khan, who took the first world crown of a career that, following a near-masterclass performance to defeat Andreas Kotelnik and claim his WBA light-welterweight title, could be now filled with stardust nights in the pay-per-view palaces of Las Vegas and Madison Square Garden.

"

With the words of trainer Freddie Roach guiding him, Khan had emphatically buried the memory of the harrowing loss to Breidis Prescott 10 months earlier.

At the age of just 22, he was a world champion.

2. Amir Khan vs. Devon Alexander (December 13, 2014)

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Over a decade on from winning a medal at the Olympics, Khan produced a masterclass to outpoint Devon Alexander in Las Vegas.

"Alexander The Great" was seen as a threat to Khan—the American was a southpaw who had won world titles at super lightweight and welterweight.

Yet the man from Missouri found himself consistently beaten to the punch.

Alexander admitted as much after the bout, per Jeff Powell of the Mail: "I couldn’t get my punches off. I couldn’t land on him. I couldn’t do all the things we had worked on in training camp. He is very fast."

Khan won by scores of 120-108, 119-109 and 118-110. Not even Alexander, or his most loyal supporters, could argue with the judges' cards.

Per BBC Sport, Khan said: "I'm the best boxer and have the quickest hands in the world. I've just turned 28 and I'm getting better and getting quicker, I just had to become smarter. I've got the best jab in the business."

At the MGM Grand in Vegas, Khan's gamble of taking on Alexander paid off. It looked like his possible reward would be the biggest jackpot in boxing—a fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr.

However, that career-defining night never materialised, as Mayweather Jr. faced first Manny Pacquiao and then Andre Berto before retiring with a 49-0 record.

1. Amir Khan vs. Marcos Maidana (December 11, 2010)

The boxer with the supposed brittle chin against the fighter with the heavy hands. Add in a world title, and all the ingredients were there for a classic between Khan and Marcos Maidana in December 2010.

Khan's first taste of performing in Las Vegas looked to be going perfectly to plan. That was, however, until Round 10.

Defending his WBA light welterweight title for a third time, the Brit dropped Maidana in the opening round when he finished off a combination with a beautiful body shot.

The Argentinian was also deducted a point in Round 5 for use of the elbow, yet had shown in brief moments how he possessed the power to trouble the champion.

Sure enough, in Round 10, he tagged his opponent with a huge overhand right.

Khan's legs immediately wobbled and, despite his best attempts to put some distance between the pair, he found the relentless Maidana impossible to shake.

The onslaught was crude at times, but it seemed Khan would crumble under the pressure. Somehow, though, the Brit managed to stay on his feet through to the end of the round.

Given the chance to clear his head and regain his senses during the break, Khan went on to record a points win by scores of 114-111 (twice) and 113-112.

Per Lance Pugmire of the LA Times, the victor said afterward: "I'm sure everyone watching my fight knows I've made mistakes. But I worked hard and came back stronger than ever. He's a strong fighter and punches hard. My chin was tested and I proved today I've got a chin."

It was hardly a solid case for his defence, but Khan had shown he had the heart required to retain his WBA super lightweight belt. Because of that, the hard-fought triumph over Maidana tops the list.

Do you agree with the top five? Has Amir Khan still yet to have the biggest victory of his career—and who will that come against? Send us in your thoughts via the comments section.