With each passing day it seems more and more likely Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s next fight will take place in May against Amir Khan. While some believe Khan is undeserving of such a major opportunity, his fighting style and drawing power seem to be outweighing the resumes of other challengers.
"It's the fight I've always been after and we're very close now, not too far away," Khan told BoxingScene.com. "Hopefully something is going to be announced within the next couple of weeks."
Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer knows that many boxing observers feel the matchup is too lopsided. "If he's going to fight Amir Khan.... Some people might disagree with me, [and] I understand because Khan might not have looked as stellar in his last couple of fights as one would have hoped."
The thinking is that despite Khan's iffy chin, he has the hand speed and technical pedigree to present a challenge Floyd hasn't seen in years. Many of Mayweather's previous fights have been against bigger men, often thunder-packing plodders. He has proven to quick for these types, though, embarrassing Canelo Alvarez and Robert Guerrero after convincingly besting Miguel Cotto.
"I'm not flat-footed," Khan said. "I might not be heavy handed, but I'm an explosive fighter with fast hands and fast feet. Quicker than Floyd by far. Floyd has never fought someone as quick as me so I think that's the key to causing him big, big problems."
Another reason Khan will be the likely choice is drawing power. In the absence of a truly compelling challenger like Alvarez was, the promotion teams are trying to land a moneymaker. Khan is a popular British fighter, and also brings the Middle Eastern market to the table.
"I bring a lot to the table," Khan said regarding his marketability. "I bring the Asian market to the table that Mayweather's never hit. I mean you can go to Asia and no one would know him. Dubai, Pakistan, India. India has a population of a billion, Pakistan is half a billion. It's a big market that I hit."
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