Canelo vs. Khan: Start Time, TV Schedule, Online Odds and Projected Winner

It's the fight of Amir Khan's career on Saturday night in Las Vegas, as the unfailingly confident British boxer has stepped up in weight class in order to challenge Saul "Canelo" Alvarez for the WBC World middleweight title.

Khan, 29, rose to prominence dominating the competition at 140 pounds. He acquitted himself well in a few fights at welterweight, and is now set to take on the larger Alvarez at a catchweight of 155 pounds. Alvarez can use this highly anticipated bout to further establish himself as the freshest face of boxing.

The 25-year-old Mexican boxer has already established himself as a major draw fighting the likes of Floyd Mayweather Jr., Erislandy Lara and Miguel Cotto, the latter bout earning him the WBC title he's putting on the line against Khan.

Alvarez will be the favorite when the two men step into the ring on Saturday, but he can't overlook Khan's speed and determination.

Here's the rundown for one of the bigger fights on the 2016 boxing calendar.


Canelo Alvarez vs. Amir Khan Viewing Info, Odds

When: Saturday, May 7 at 9 p.m. ET

Where: T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas

TV: HBO (pay-per-view)

Live Stream: BoxNation (UK)

Tickets: ScoreBig.com

Odds: Khan 7-2; Alvarez 1-5

Note: Odds are courtesy of Odds Shark and updated as of Saturday, May 7 at 12 p.m. ET.

 
Preview and Projection

The last time we saw Khan (31-3, 19 KOs) in the ring was in May 2015 for a successful but concerning defense of his WBC Silver welterweight title against Chris Algieri. Khan let Algieri hang around for all 12 rounds, and even looked the worse for wear early on after taking a hard right hand to his suspect chin. 

The Brit's blinding hand speed still propelled him to a decision win, but fans will have to wonder if he can survive a full 12 against a bigger puncher like Alvarez (46-1-1, 32 KOs). When Khan gets his feet set, he's capable of rattling off three- and four-punch combos in a fraction of the time it takes other boxers, but any defensive slip-ups will likely see Alvarez capitalize with his expert timing and counterpunching ability.

Speed kills, but Alvarez doesn't appear concerned, per the Boston Herald's Ron Borges:

"

Look, I think I faced every kind of style. There’s so many different styles I’ve faced. I’ve faced people like that are fast, elusive. I think he doesn’t bring anything different to the table that I haven’t faced before in the past. He’s very fast. He’s explosive. He’s a very, very good fighter.

"

If Alvarez has to worry about speed, Khan has to be concerned with power and timing. Khan has suffered knockouts at the hands of Danny Garcia and Breidis Prescott before. The powerful Alvarez would appear more than capable of delivering a decisive blow.

Eric Jamison/Associated Press

It's for this reason that Bleacher Report's Kelsey McCarson suggests that Khan should make sure he keeps moving around the ring in Las Vegas:

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Volume punching, something Khan considers himself "decent" at, will also be important on fight night. But even more imperative will be varying the cadence and tempo of those punches. The exact pattern of his combinations should never be something Alvarez can see coming.

Why? Because to have a real chance at winning, Khan has to keep the slower-footed Alvarez moving around the ring and off-balance for the majority of the fight.

If every round is a dance, Khan should be the one leading Alvarez around the dance floor.

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A cautious, defensive-minded approach seems like Khan's best bet at a victory. A knockout win seems highly unlikely against the sturdy Alvarez. Keeping up the volume punching necessary to impress the judges is always a difficulty with a hit-and-move strategy, but Khan's quickness should allow him to sneak in more punches than most boxers are capable of when fighting on the back foot.

Of course, Khan could choose to stand and deliver, where his chin will likely fail him, or Alvarez can use his power punches to send crippling blows to Khan's body and thus limit his movement in later rounds.

Patience will be in order for this strategy to bear out; as ESPN.com's Andrew Davis and Malik Smith note, Khan knows when to clinch:

"Body punches might not work against Khan, who is known to clinch when opponents get close. In his three fights at 147 pounds, Khan initiated clinches 4.3 times per round when his opponents closed the distance on him. In his two fights in lighter weight classes, he clinched 2.3 times per round."

Alvarez soundly defeated the aging Cotto in their big fight in November. Cotto's considerable power hardly deterred Alvarez, and Khan is likely to have the same issue, lest the increased weight give his hands an unforeseen boost in the power department.

Alvarez may have to eat a few blink-and-you'll-miss jabs to chase down Khan in the ring and cut off his angles, but once he gets a handle on his pattern and overall strategy, look out. 

Even before the first punch is thrown in Las Vegas, Khan has already earned a moral victory of sorts in seeking out this battle. According to a report by BoxingNewsOnline.net's Matt Christie, Bernard Hopkins said:

"

You gotta respect a guy who’s coming up two weight classes, to take on Canelo Alvarez. You gotta respect – you dare to be great – all the fighters out there who dare to be great: don’t talk it, tell whoever’s telling you what to do, you’re a grown man and you’re paying your own bills – and I hope you’re paying your taxes – you must take control of your career. Amir Khan is the first fighter that I’ve seen do that in a long time, as far as the last year or two in boxing business with all the soap-opera stuff to write about.

"

Khan should be commended for his bravery in taking on this fight, but he's going to have to essentially fight a perfect fight in order to win. His speed and tenacity will serve him well early on, and he should win a few rounds.

However, once Alvarez settles in, the Mexican will take control of the fight and earn a late-round TKO victory. After that, it's up to him to take a note from Khan and press for the biggest challenges he can take on.