It looks as if Manny Pacquiao may be making his second trip to the UK in as many months, with Amir Khan revealing that the Pacman, the world’s No 1 pound for pound fighter, has expressed a wish to be ringside for the WBA light-welterweight challenge against the champion, Andreas Kotelnik, on June 27, at London’s O2 Arena.
Khan has also, in the last 72 hours, expressed the wish to fight Ricky Hatton, stopped inside two rounds by Pacquiao in Las Vegas just over a month ago. The 22-year-old from Bolton insists he feels more comfortable stepping up a division to 140lbs, and at 5ft 10ins, that is understandable.
“Manny is back in the Philippines at the moment, but he’s said that he would like to come to the fight, and we’ll look after him,” said Khan. “It will be good to have him there.”
Khan, 22, has sparred with Pacquiao ahead of his last two fights, with victories over Oisin Fagan and Marco Antonio Barrera. Pacquiao has not been in Freddie Roach’s Wildcard gym in the build up to the Kotelnik fight, yet Khan says that the Pacman is still an inspiration.
“I train as hard as Pacquiao, if not harder, and watching him working in the gym gives me a real buzz,” said Khan. “It’s a privilege being around such a great fighter, and I learn from him all time.”
But Bolton-born Amir draws the line at Pacquiao’s infamous training routine of being beaten with sticks. “I’ve not done that yet, but I’ve got a great trainer in Freddie and a great nutritionist and they will make sure that I am stronger than I have ever been for this fight.”
Like Pacquiao, Khan moves to Los Angeles to prepare for fights, but insisted the move will not be permanent. “Home is home. I don’t really want to move away from home permanently. It’s all about training camps, maybe ten weeks before a fight.”
