Amir Khan Interview on Dmitry Salita, Manny Pacquiao vs Miguel Cotto, Floyd Mayweather Jr, Mosley, Calzaghe, Hatton, Dislike of Carl Froch and More! By David Tyler, DoghouseBoxing (Nov 4, 2009) Doghouse Boxing
Amir Khan is another prize pupil under the tutelage of trainer Freddie Roach. Amir currently wears the WBA Light Welterweight championship belt. Let’s welcome Amir into the doghouse.
David Tyler – Hi Amir, how are you doing?
Amir Khan – I’m alright man, thank you.
DT – The WildCard is a crazy place with Manny Pacquiao here does this hamper your workout?
AK – No, not at all. I am completely focused and my concentration is not affected.
DT – Amir, your title is on the line this December 5, when you fight Dmitry Salita at Newcastle, United Kingdom.
AK – That’s right.
DT – Amir, Salita is undefeated with one draw and you have one defeat?
AK – That’s right, I have one defeat and he is undefeated but he has never fought an Amir Khan.
DT – For sure. Salita has been very inactive between fights, when was your last fight?
AK – I fight frequently but I’ve been quite lucky from the Kotelnik fight when I won the world title it’s been the longest break I had. Normally I fight every three months so I have been quite busy.
DT – I know your trainer, Freddie Roach, wanted the Salita fight to be on the undercard of the Cotto/ Pacquiao fight.
AK – We tried but it didn’t work out. I really wanted to have the first defense of my title in the UK and that will be my last fight for a long long time in the UK because I want to fight in the States after this fight. I feel that I owe it to my fan base in the UK to have my first title defense there.
DT – What’s your thoughts about boxing in the UK?
AK – What I love in the UK is my fan base. On top of that in Britain boxing has gone downhill a little while ago especially after Joe Calzaghe retired and Ricky Hatton got defeated. So they needed a new superstar and I have come up now and I am flying the flag for the British fans.
DT – Yes you are but what about Carl Froch?
AK – Me and Carl have our differences. I don’t really respect the guy because I think whoever he fights he disrespects after the fight, he needs to take the sport more professionally and I don’t like fighters who just talk rubbish and trash to their opponents. It’s a sport and people have to realize that before the fight you are not friends but after the fight you can say at least one good thing about your opponent. He has said some very bad things about his opponent. He is a very bad person. He has even said some bad things about me because I’m a different weight. They come out of the blue and maybe it’s because we have different promoters. He is always on the dig about me and my boxing skills. I think it’s more jealously than anything so really I don’t like him but I just mind my own business and I really hope that one day he will mind his own business as well.
DT- His business will be minded by a German named King Arthur Abraham who will surely knockout the arrogant Carl Froch.
AK – You know, Carl’s last fight against Dirrell was very, very, close and I felt that he had an advantage with the judges because the fight was in his own backyard, but that’s boxing for you. Arthur Abraham is a very difficult hard hitting opponent. He is very durable and very active in a fight and I think he will definitely cause serious problems for Carl Froch. The Super Six tournament is a tough tournament and I think that down the line he is working for that defeat.
DT – Bet on Abraham! Amir this fight is at 140 lbs. who else in the light welterweight division would you like to fight after you beat Salita?
AK – I like to fight anyone, you know I get a lot of criticism for not fighting this guy or not fighting that guy. Why didn’t anyone else fight Kotnelik when they knew he had the title? I could have taken the easy route but I didn’t take the easy route, I boxed whoever was out there and Kotnelik was out there and I stepped in, that could have been Maidana, that could have been Victor Ortiz it could have been anyone but they never took that chance. So after I beat him that’s when they started saying oh Kotnelik, I could have beaten him. It’s the way I beat him so easy. There’s the likes of Maidana, there’s the likes of Victor Ortiz also Marquez who I would like to fight. You know next year is going to be a really big big year for me and I really want to fight the likes of Malignaggi, Juan Diaz who would be on my list.
DT – I would love to see you fight Malignaggi.
AK – That would be a great fight and also Juan Diaz would be a great fight and also work my way towards the likes of Marquez. People forget that I’m still 22 and I still have a lot of room for improvement. I’m not a full fighter yet but working alongside Freddie and Manny Pacquiao are only going to make me a better fighter. Hopefully in the next four months you will see me fight the bigger, bigger names in the sport. Hopefully I will be at the top of the bill in the United States.
DT – Speaking of Manny, your feelings about the Pacquiao/ Cotto rumble.
AK – It’s going to be a great fight, both fighters are hungry for this fight both have a lot on the line and none of the fighters are past their peak. I think Manny could win this fight with a late stoppage. Why, because he throws a lot of punches and Miguel Cotto has been cut a lot in his previous fights and Manny might cut him with good early shots and win by a late stoppage. What Cotto is going to be doing is fighting and throwing punches between Manny’s combinations because that’s the only way he might catch him. Manny has such good footwork. You never know because Cotto has seen speed in the likes of Shane Mosley and Zab Judah, he is a very patient fighter. You must remember that the fight against Margarito he looked very good and was winning the early rounds and now we know why he lost because Margarito had an illegal substance in his gloves for that fight. It still took three good punches to stop Cotto. For Manny it will be a tougher fight than De La Hoya, than Ricky Hatton, but I do think that Manny will be victorious in this fight.
DT – OK, let’s say that Manny does win. Everyone is going to want a Mayweather/ Pacquiao fight.
AK – Oh definitely yeah, that’s the fight that people want to see. It’s going that way, Manny is winning and Floyd is winning and they are the two best fighters on the planet. Why shouldn’t they fight? I think the fight is going to happen and I could see it happening in Vegas maybe 12 months down the line. I think it will be a super fight and who will win the fight will be tough to say because Mayweather is really skillful and Manny is an explosive guy with a lot of punches. So it’s going to be a very interesting fight to see who is the better man that night. Whoever is up for it, whoever is the most hungry will win that fight.
DT – Let’s go back to Salita again. Have you seen any video of him yet?
AK – Yes I’ve been watching a lot of video of him. I really think that inside and outside the ring the guy is a very nice guy. I know he comes from the Jewish faith and he is very religious just like I am as a Muslim but we are going to keep our religion separated and keep the fight professional. A lot of people are saying I’m fighting this guy because he is Jewish, that’s pure nonsense, I’m fighting him because he wants my title and he is the mandatory. I can see the fight not going the full 12 rounds. I think I have the explosiveness to win before round 12. I never go into a fight looking for a knockout, I am going to go in the ring to box him and if the knockout comes it comes. I want to put the pressure on him; I want to give him a boxing lesson.
DT – Amir, we talked about the super six in the Super Middleweight division. Would you be willing to participate in an event like that in the Light Welterweight division?
AK – Why not, it just depends on what’s there and what the money is like. If they want me to go into a tournament then they have to pay me good otherwise there is no point in me participating in the tournament. I’m not saying that because I’m scared of anyone in my division, I think I am ready for anyone. A super six tournament would be brilliant but you have to look at the money, you have to look where the super six is going to take you. Say you become a super six champion, where do you go from there because you are the champion does that mean you have to move up in weight, does that mean you have to keep fighting the same guys, I am going to leave that to my promotion team. Now I have started my own promotion company, Khan Promotions, and we will just see where we go from here.
DT – Amir, thank you very much for your time. You’re a bright young man with a great future ahead. Good luck in the fight with Salita and Many Blessings to you.
***David Tyler replies to all his e-mails and loves to hear from the readers. Comments, Questions, Suggestions, E-mail David now at:dtyler53@cox.net
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