ENGLISH FANS ARE STILL IN SHOCK!
Garcia Lands Crushing Right On Khan
San Francisco, CA– While boxing fans in the United Kingdom are still reeling just like Amir Khan (26-3, 19 KOs) was Saturday night against World 140 lb. champ Danny Garcia, I’m amazed that British fight fans put that much stock in this young man of Pakistani heritage. His failure to bring home the 2004 Olympic Gold Medal, something considered a foregone conclusion, that was the first clue that Khan may have been, “A Mere Con.”
NOTHING EVER “GOLDEN” ABOUT KHAN
With a perfect boxing style, a height and reach advantage over his opponents, as an amateur Khan was the “heir apparent” to boxing greatness in England. His countrymen were likening him to the next coming of “Sugar Ray” Leonard or Oscar De La Hoya, even sans an Olympic title.
THERE ARE HEROIC FIGHTERS FROM EVERYWHERE
Just about every ethnic group has their “iconic” fighter, be it boxing or MMA. Sweden has Alex Gustafson of the UFC. Mexico has the still green Saul Alvarez, while Manny Pacquiao is the king of both the Philippines and most of Asia. I could go on, but I think you get my drift. Surprisingly, the UK thought more of Khan than the truly tested #2 world super middleweight and ex-champ Carl Froch.
LOSS TO COLOMBIAN WAS NO “FLUKE”
When Breidis Prescott (25-4, 20 KOs) of Colombia starched Amir in 2008, his apologists came up with the old adage in that Khan got “caught cold.” I set the odds at Khan 3-1 because of Khan’s chin, while other guys had it a 6-1 fight, which I knew was preposterous, it’s not that I thought Danny Garcia was going to destroy Khan seeing his beating the aged Erik Morales was not something worthy of writing home about.
HBO’S “BOXING EVANGELISTS” WERE ALL OVER KHAN!
Garcia, current WBA/WBC 140 lb. titleholder (24-0, 15 KOs) is “real good” at everything, but not “great” in any one department, at least not yet. But if you were to listen to the American feed of the HBO broadcast, you would have thought Amir Khan was a boxing God. The British TV team, headed by ex-lightweight champ Jim Watt, although visibly hurt that their guy lost, they weren’t verbally blowing Khan like the HBO crew.
MEET THE CHEERLEADERS
Sign a contract with HBO and you always seem to get the benefit of the doubt from Jim Lampley, Max Kellerman, Emanuel Steward, to a lesser degree, and Larry Merchant, the HBO Godfather rarely puckers up to the network’s contracted fighters.
KHAN NEEDS ANOTHER LINE OF WORK!
Because of the manner in which Khan responds to being punched anywhere above the shoulders, as the big left hook that dropped Khan the initial time hit him on partially the neck and jawbone area of his head. The fact that he rose was admirable, but his legs were gone and referee Kenny Bayless afforded every opportunity he could after the first and second knockdowns.
DON’T WANT TO SEE KHAN GET HURT!
Boxing, fighting in general, it is a “game of hurt.” Khan’s Neurological response to his getting dropped all three times were to me disturbing. If I were part of Team Khan, I’d seriously recommend he retire, but don’t expect it. They say he could move up and fight a guy he already beat in WBA titleholder Paulie Malignaggi (31-4, 7 KOs) at 147.
PAULIE MIGHT BE ABLE TO BEAT “DAMAGED GOODS” KHAN
Malignaggi can’t punch and that’s why Khan’s people want to move in the direction of the Brooklynite. The problem with fighting Paulie is that if Amir gets hit right, even the light punching Italian-American could put Khan in peril. That being said, I don’t expect Khan to retire, but if he were my brother I’d be pushing him hard in that direction.
CONCUSSED (OUT) ON THE WAY DOWN
Listen to Pedro here Amir, the residual effects of not taking a punch well and the fact the first shot left you “concussed,” meaning you were out from the moment that left hook landed until your head bounced off the canvas. Amir, nobody else will tell you this. They’ll talk about “lucky punches” and the like, but they won’t be being honest with you.
RESIDUAL EFFECTS OF HEAD TRAUMA TO A SOFT HEAD!
I’m not going to go down the list of boxers that are mucked up from boxing, but it is lengthy. With Khan’s connections in the UK, that and being reasonably bright means he can do something else. For if he continues to fight, there’s a good chance later in life that Amir won’t know the difference between an English fag and a New York blunt!
Pedro Fernandez