WBA jr. welterweight champion, Amir Khan is putting in the long hours needed to get in shape for his
April 16th title defense against Ireland’s Paul McCloskey, but he hasn’t lost track of what he wants to
accomplish or who he wants to be.
“Look at Manny, he is a nice guy, modest and generous with everyone, especially those who come from poverty like himself,” said Khan, just prior to jetting off to the Philippines to join Pacquiao in camp as Pacquiao also begins preparations for his May 7th bout with Shane Mosley. “Then you look at Floyd Mayweather, who is a great talent but has a bad personality. I don’t want to be known as a fighter like that. I want to be loved the way people love Manny.”
By all accounts, Khan has learned several life lessons just from sharing the same gym as the Filipino sensation.
The talented, but once-unfocused UK native and 2004 Olympic Silver Medalist was seen by many as being on a collision course with mediocrity. At 22-years of age and with as much raw talent as any of the top fighters in the sport, he was shocked via first round KO against an unheralded and crude Colombian brawler, Breidis Prescott.
Then the proud young warrior swallowed his pride and made the best move of his career by calling on trainer Freddie Roach to help change him from an outstanding regional/national athlete into a world class fighter with pound for pound potential.
Since joining up with Roach, Khan has gone 6-0 with 4 KOs, including a career-defining battle with heavy-handed Argentine, Marcos Maidana.
Aside from the guidance provided by 3-time trainer of the year, Roach, Khan also got the chance to get up close and personal with pound for pound kingpin, Manny Pacquiao, learning from the Filipino’s work ethic and blue collar approach to the sport.
Khan will have his chance to officially enter the pound for pound rankings this Summer, since a title unification bout with Timothy Bradley is tentatively scheduled for some time in July.
But first is McCloskey and a chance to fight in front of his home country fans for the first time in nearly eighteen months. (Continued on Next Page)
“Not once have I said that I’m looking ahead to Bradley. My whole focus is on McCloskey and I’m not taking this fight easy. I’m training like a challenger, working really hard in the gym,” Khan told Sky Sports. “This fight for me is even bigger because it’s in Manchester and it’s in front of my home crowd.”
******************* Khan, since canning conditioning coach, Alex Ariza, says that he feels stronger than ever with his new strategy of eating only organic foods under new strength and conditioning coach, Michael Vale.
Under Ariza’s regimen of 7,000+ calories and numerous supplements, pills, and shakes, Khan claims to have felt sluggish and weak at times.
“Organic food is the best for you, and I’m eating the best, a lot of fresh vegetables. I also keep myself hydrated. It’s all made a big difference to my performance in the gym,” Khan told the Guardian, a UK newspaper. “When I had to do all those calories, I had to use up all my energy [to burn them off]. Now I feel sharp and strong, so much stronger. I am in the best shape ever and I don’t take any short cuts.”
Ariza, on his part, claims that the split with Khan is the result of Team Khan politics and, more specific, difficulties with Khan’s father, Shah.
A few years ago, the boisterous young lion from Bolton would’ve torn into Ariza for some of the comments he made about his father and the reasons behind the split, but Khan, indeed, seems to have learned a few things, other than boxing tips, from Pacquiao.
“At the end of the day, we just grew apart,” Khan said of the split. “Alex is very professional, too, but we had just gone so far. He’s still here with Manny, so that’s fine, (but) I needed a full-time conditioner.”
Could the Braggart from Bolton have learned something about humility and self-control?
*******************
Amir Khan (24-1, 17 KOs) will be taking on Paul McCloskey April 16th at the M.E.N. Arena in Manchester, UK.
This will be Khan’s fourth defense of the title he won in an eliminator against Andreas Kotelnik in July of 2009. In his three previous defenses, he has beaten Dmitriy Salita, Paulie Malignaggi, and Marcos Maidana. Also on his career resume is a stoppage victory over Marco Antonio Barrera as well as several victories against top-level UK fighters. (Continued on Next Page)
The undefeated McCloskey is the current European jr. welterweight champion and has made two successful defenses since winning the belt in late 2009. However, he’s yet to face opposition above
the regional/national level.
Sources: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/othersports/article-1366110/JEFF-POWELL-Amir-Khan-growing-real-Manny.html
http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2011/mar/13/amir-khan-world-title
http://theboxingtribune.com/2011/02/khan-mccloskey-april-16th-in-manchester/
