Some fighters, for whatever reason, are wrongly classified by the masses without due process.
Floyd Mayweather doesn’t stick his chin on a platter and trade blow for blow so some equate his style to running. (Main pic courtesy of HBO)
But Mayweather isn’t a runner at all.
He is a effective pocket fighter who, at spirts, can be an aggressor who locks opponents into retreat mode.
But this article isn’t about Floyd; it’s about Amir Khan and his supposed weak chin.
Has the Brit been given an unfair label?
Amir Khan has been knocked out twice in 31 fights; once in every 15.5 bouts.
Fact: Kostya Tszyu was also KO’d twice in 31 bouts but no one considers him weak. In fact, he is revered as a warrior and legend.
Was Aruro Gatti chinny?
Fact: Arturo Gatti was knocked out five times in 49 fights; once in every 9.8 bouts. Interestingly, his bravado was never questioned. Quite the contrary. Gatti is the viewed as one of the most gritty fighters in the history of the sport.
Fact: Mike Tyson was stopped five times in 58 fights; once every 11.6 bouts. While Mike isn’t considered as durable as Muhammad Ali, Evander Holyfield or George Foreman, no one classifies him as chinny.
Fact: Ricky Hatton was stopped three times in 45 fights; once every 15 bouts. Has his ability to absorb punshment ever been in question?
The fighters above are praised for their skills and resilience yet Khan is perceived as weak, but a comparison by the numbers tells a different story.
Khan vs Prescott
Khan suffered his first loss in 2009 via a first round knockout to Breidis Prescott who entered that bout 19-0 with 17 knockouts. The Colombian, at lightweight, was a knockout terror.
“We knew he (Prescott) was a dangerous puncher,” said promoter Frank Warren after the bout.
After being initially flattened by a murderous shot that landed flush, Khan arose after the first knockdown and bravely attempted to engage his foe instead of hold and subsequently got tagged flush again.
When an explosive KO artist, like Prescott (at the time), lands multiple powershots flush and within a matter of seconds, he’ll almost always knockout his opponent.
Khan vs Garcia
The Brit suffered his second loss, also via the knockout route, to Danny Garcia.
Tough guy Lucas Matthysse was floored by Garcia in September and would probably attest the Philadelphian packs a wallop.
The shot that lead to the KO was thrown with the weight of Garcia’s entire behind it and caught Khan flush on the side of neck just below the ear.
Hard punches that land cleanly on the upper side of the neck under the ear don’t always produce a knockout but can shock the brain and cause the recipient to stagger and wobble badly – and Amir Khan did just that.
Amir Khan was now forced to stand toe-to-toe and slug it out with Garcia. Receiving more than he was giving, a shaky Khan would survive the round.
Having not recovered from the effects of the left hook in the previous round, Khan was on ‘queer street’ for the entirety of Round 4 but stood toe-to-toe with Garcia like a wounded tiger, refusing to submit.
Many forget the fireworks Khan supplied after being badly hurt.
Garcia would go on to score two more knockdowns, prompting the referee to stop the bout with Khan on his feet protesting the stoppage.
Tough guy Lucas Matthysse was floored by Garcia in September and would probably attest the Philadelphian packs a wallop.
Defensive lapses or durability issues?
While Khan may have (or had) some holes defensively, let’s be fair. The fighter some have dubbed Amir ‘Chin’ Khan’ has weathered a few storms and attempted to fight back harder each time he’s been hurt.
Anyone who fights twelve hard rounds of give-and-take with the monstrous-punching Marcos Maidana and survives heavy shots, stays on his feet and even notches the win, must possess some degree of heart and durability.
Khan has eaten some flush shots from heavy punchers that would have probably knocked out just about anyone in those respective divisions.
Is the weak chin label fair?
Any future opponent who believes Khan will completely crumble and go limp after being hit by a few hard shots might be in for a rude awakening.
There is nothing in his past to suggest that.
