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Amir hiccup for Khan

The champion will replace the superstar on Saturday night

Posted: 04th December 2008 09:12

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Khan Prescott Knock Out First Minute Box Office

Khan: gone is the superstar

Amir isn't too long in the tooth for Freddie Roach to make a big, big impact. The lad is willing to learn, he seems to have loved his time out in Hollywood and maybe it was the breath of fresh air he needed. Maybe he needed to concentrate on just being a champion fighter rather than the superstar he is over here.

Johnny Nelson
Quotes of the week

KHAN v FAGAN
12 Rounds Lightweight
JUDGEMENT NIGHT
10pm, Saturday, December 6
Live on Sky Box Office & HD
Call 08442 410888 to book!
Click here for booking details

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A lot of fighters, once they've lost, can't get over it. I expect Amir Khan to be the complete opposite.

He seems to have already accepted that the Breidis Prescott knockout was just one of those things and while he will try to address it - and has - I really can't see it affecting him.

And I don't think it matters that much. Look at Thomas Hearns: every time he got hit on the chin he went down, yet he still ended up being a formidable fighter. He had to live with it and so will Amir. But I think he will.

Going to Hollywood to work with Freddie Roach will benefit him immensely. They can't address the problem of his chin, but they can tighten up his defence, he'll be more tucked up and he will have better upper body movement.

Sparring with guys of all shapes and sizes will have also helped, although he is bound to be a little gun-shy against Oisin Fagan simply because it's his first time out in public.

Dangerous

But I can't see that lasting longer than the first minute, or until he gets a solid shot. Amir has such a strong character and Fagan is the perfect opponent for his comeback. He needs a guy that is going to walk forward, be there for him, someone who is dangerous, but not too dangerous, strong, but not too strong.

It's a great chance for him to get back to using that jab and I am sure Freddie Roach has been working on that with him. He is the sort of kid that will do whatever he needs to win, box or brawl and Fagan will give him the opportunity. There is no point edging Khan back in slowly, that's not really what he's about.

And we forget that while work needed to be done on his defence, he is still a fabulous attacking fighter. Roach will have worked on that too and being in the Wild Card gym will have meant he had to play second, third, even fourth fiddle when it came to sparring and that will keep him humble, keep him honest.

The one thing I like about the kid is he is still pretty much a blank canvas. We all talked about Ricky Hatton changing trainers and changing styles and we all said that as soon as that bell sounds, fighters tend to revert to type, whatever they have been taught.

Champion

Well Amir isn't too long in the tooth for Roach to make a big, big impact. The lad is willing to learn, he seems to have loved his time out in Hollywood and maybe it was the breath of fresh air he needed. Maybe he needed to concentrate on just being a champion fighter rather than the superstar he is over here.

You are not going to fix that chin problem, so there is no point in getting away from it. Again Hearns can be the template and I am sure Roach is smart enough to realise there is so much he can do going forward, it was just a case of making some minor adjustments to the other side of his game.

Freddie not being in his corner is a slight issue, but providing there is someone there to get the message across that he has to keep doing the things he has been doing in the gym, it shouldn't hinder him too much.

I can see him stopping Fagan, possibly around the seventh round, after taking his time to get into the fight. That is only natural given his last performance, but I expect him to slowly but surely dissect his man.

He will be a little more cautious and maybe more patient, but his workrate will be the same, so will that handspeed. And his defence will be a lot tighter.