If Amir Khan had any lingering signs of letdown following the recent cancellation of his proposed rematch with Lamont Peterson, they were surely washed away at today?s heated press conference ahead of his July 14th clash with Danny Garcia.
Khan, a former champion at 140 pounds, had been savoring the chance to get revenge on May 19th against Peterson, who upset the British star this past December in a lively back-and-forth melee. But when Peterson failed a pre-fight drug test last month, the rematch was scrapped while Khan would later turn his sights to the young upstart Garcia, the world?s WBC champion in the junior welterweight class.
The Peterson rematch was to go down at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada, the same venue that will be hosting the Garcia match.
While playing host to the media at ESPN Zone inside of L.A. Live in Los Angeles, Khan and Garcia both exuded a brash confidence ahead of their duel, and it?s easy to spot the brewing tension that is building between the two camps.
Coming off of a unanimous decision victory over Erik Morales this past March, the 24-year old Garcia insisted that he has yet to bring his full arsenal of tricks to the table.
“You haven’t seen the best of me,? Garcia stated. ?I want to defend my title and on July 14th I’m still going to be champ.”
The fighter?s father and trainer Angel Garcia didn?t hide his feelings towards Khan, calling the Bolton native overrated and guaranteeing a victory for his charge next month.
Khan?s response to such trash talk was straight and to the point.
?When I beat your son, will I still be overrated?? Khan asked.
After the presser had cleared, an upbeat Khan took to his personal Facebook and Twitter accounts and claimed to have seen fear coming from his opponent and his team.
?Press [conference] over. Danny Garcia will get his 1st knockout defeat. Team Garcia looked nervous and scared [and] talked trash as I smiled.?
While there was instant disappointment after the Peterson fallout, this fight is shaping up to be a pretty interesting encounter all its own.
