DECEMBER 11 sees a fantastic showdown in the light-welterweight division which pits a sharp-shooting boxer against a hard-punching brawler. A classic styles match-up.
Amir Khan-Marcos Maidana promises to be a fascinating, exciting fight between two of the top four fighters in the division.
Maidana?s main weakness is the fact he is very raw, rugged and so can be outboxed. Khan?s main weakness is undoubtedly his chin.
Maidana?s strength is his power and Khan?s is the fact he is such a fantastic ?boxer? with amazing speed. This fight has all the ingredients to make it a must-see contest in the 140lb division.
The other two fighters making up the ?Fantastic Four? of the division square off in the first big showdown of 2011 to set up what will be a mouthwatering finale to see who the man is at 10st. Tim Bradley-Devon Alexander promises to be a class above in the skills department, but maybe not as exciting as the Khan fight. However, it?s just as important a fight.
These are the kind of showdowns the game needs in order to ignite the fans? interests and to create excitement.
That Khan was wiped out not so long ago by a nobody and now is on the verge of becoming a pound-for-pound fighter and the best in his division shows the determination and strength of character the kid has. We all knew he had the talent, his handspeed is amazing, and Freddie Roach has made the adjustments needed for him to compete at the higher level. Technically he?s now ready for the elite.
Yes there are the doubts about his chin, but there have been plenty of elite fighters over the years who were seen as ?chinny?. The way Khan fights now makes it very hard for fighters to find that weak spot.
When you look at how Khan went to work on Andriy Kotelnik, making easy work of it, and then compare how Alexander really struggled against the same man, it gives you an insight into just how capable Khan is.
Maidana, for all his strength and power, was being taken apart by young Victor Ortiz? until the Californian got carried away and forgot the gameplan. Choosing to stand and fight the stronger man was his undoing and he was quickly on the receiving end of the South American?s bombs.
If Ortiz found it so easy to outbox Maidana then Khan is going to look a million dollars. Khan is faster and longer than Ortiz but more importantly has the better temperament. If trainer Freddie Roach tells Khan to box, he will box. No matter how easy it gets, until Roach wants him to turn up the heat, Khan will stick to the plan.
I can?t see Maidana getting to him. Amir?s feet will get him out of the way of any attacks and the firepower coming back at Marcos will have him covering up looking for the lucky punch.
Of course, when the bell goes and we?re all watching it unfold, there will always be the ?what if? factor. No matter how Khan is controlling the action, what happens if Maidana gets one of his bombs home? For that reason it will be exciting for as long as the fight lasts. If he does land then for sure he has the power to knock Amir Khan out. I say that not because Khan has a dodgy chin, but because Marcos Maidana is a genuine puncher who hits hard enough to take anyone in the division out.
I like this fight for Khan. When the fight was first talked about and then ? according to some critics ? avoided by Amir, I thought Khan?s team should have taken it. But the minute Maidana was less impressive in his last outing against DeMarcus Corley, it was pretty obvious the fight was then going to be made.
I actually put Khan at number two in the division at the moment, behind Timothy Bradley. At the moment! I think that fight would be fascinating.
I believe Bradley beats Alexander in their showdown. Bradley is very clever, strong and picks his shots well. But it is a close-run thing, in fact on any given day, Khan, Bradley and Alexander could all beat each other.
Who knows, maybe we might see a series of match-ups between these fighters. I for one hope so!
