Khan vs. Peterson: Title Loss for Khan a Defeat for Boxing Too

Amir Khan is a rising star in the sport of boxing, but his loss to Lamont Peterson on Saturday night is not only going to hurt his career, the defeat will hurt the sport as well.

With Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather the only stars that casual fans get excited to watch fight, boxing needs a young star that can challenge them.

Khan has been exceptional in 2011 and many considered him a heavy favorite against Peterson. Losing the fight was not as disappointing as how he lost the bout, however.

Khan's early start was exceptional and he was quite aggressive in the first round, even knocking Peterson down. Khan allowed Peterson to regroup and fight back and did not put him away when he had the chance.

The sport of boxing cannot focus on Pacquiao and Mayweather to drive the sport and reel in casual fans. Boxing needs another young star, someone who can fight these two mega-stars and even upset them.

After losing to Peterson, Khan is not going to face Pac-Man or Money May for a a while now, and will most likely have a rematch with Peterson for his next bout. 

As a rising star and someone worth watching in the ring, Khan really disappointed on Saturday. On the big stage as the favorite, Khan was unable to prove he could take the next step in his career. 

Boxing needs a star to take over for Mayweather and Pacquiao when they retire. Money May could retire soon and Pac-Man's trainer Freddie Roach recently said he could retire after a future Mayweather fight.

Boxing needed Khan to win on Saturday and become a real star ready to take on the best fighters, but that plan has been put on hold after Khan failed to deliver a victory against Peterson.