What is the public perception of Amir Khan in the UK?

[Dynamic Hispanic]

Hey guys,

I'm an American observer of the sport and am curious what the level of support Amir Khan is receiving over there now that he has made his trek to the States and works at Wildcard with Freddie Roach. Is he in danger of becoming the pariah that Lennox Lewis did when he ditched the UK for Canada early on and fought mostly in the States during his reign?

John Evans at Undisputed Fight Magazine takes a look from that point of view and I am curious if you guys agree with him. What's the split?

Is there more than gold on the line Saturday for Amir Khan?
by John Evans

Amir Khan faces more than the light welterweight division’s most devastating puncher this Saturday night. He faces a battle to win over his critics.

Despite rebounding from a devasting first round knockout defeat to the big punching but limited Breidis Prescott by claiming the WBA world title and following that with a string of career best performances, the doubts persist over Khans ability to take a punch. Whilst some fighters choose to look for excuses after their first defeat, Khan realised that changes needed to be made and reinvented himself. Breaking away from allegedly and the comforts of the UK, Khan put his career in the hands of Golden Boy Promotions, stepped up to 140lbs and moved his training operations to the worlds toughest proving ground, the famed Wildcard Gym in Hollywood.

Just over 2 years later, Khan has upped his game to such an extent that the worlds most respected trainer Freddie Roach has decided to delay his retirement in order to continue working with him. Training alongside Manny Pacquiao looks to have inspired Khan and he seems to have benefitted greatly from working with Pacquiao’sstrength and conditioning coach Alex Ariza. Whilst many commend Khan and admire the improvements he has made there still remains that lingering doubt.

What will happen when he gets hit? These doubts don’t just stem from the Prescott fight. Although he came through his early career apprenticeship unbeaten, Khan found himself on the floor on numerous occasions. Whilst his wins over Michael Gomez and Willie Limond were good domestic victories, the way Khan was tagged and rocked raised immediate concerns. As often happens with an unbeaten prospect, the flaws are brushed under the carpet as long as the wins keep coming. The demolition at the hands of the at the time unknown Prescott meant these flaws could no longer be ignored and has fuelled his critics ever since.

Click here to read the rest...

[Hagler2002]

He is a w@nker of the highest order.

[dondada]

He is a w@nker of the highest order.

You might have to translate, Hagler...

The Simpsons has used this word a couple of times so I get the sense Americans don't really understand it.

I dunno...it's probably impossible for anyone on here to accurately tell you the 'public perception' because we're almost exclusively hardcore boxing fans. Most of us lose perspective of what 'Joe Bloggs' thinks.

I give him great credit for what he's done since Prescott. He's grown a lot technically and physically though still has a big of growing to do personally (hey, don't we all?).

Roach has been quite candid in saying he knows his flaw (chin) so has him boxing every fight to protect that.

[Broc]

Khan is a very fast and skilled boxer and has the potential to go a long long way but he appears to be a bit arrogant, maybe its just how he comes across.

[Counter-puncher]

i stopped reading when it told me that Lennox Lewis was a pariah over here

[dekker88]

hardcore boxing fans aside the rest of the public mainly fall into two camps....racist dicks who wanna see him lose because of his ethnicity and religion....and others who get behind him because he's british..

personally i like him....and like his attitude...

it does make me laugh when people say that the arrogance of a boxer is something they find offensive...

without arrogance none of em would ever get in the ring in the first place.

[Scottrf]

Hasn't been the most popular due to some of his comments (particularly playing the race card), his motoring troubles, and also the fact he was on PPV before he really deserved it. However, I think he's growing on people, and will continue to do so while he works hard and takes on challenging opponents.

For me, I tend to ignore what you hear/read about someone and focus on what they do in the ring because you never really know what someone is like. I definitely feel some of his comments have been either manipulated or he has been naive in giving the press the type of responses he has done. He is a real talent and I think people will come round to him if he keeps on performing well.

[dekker88]

i stopped reading when it told me that Lennox Lewis was a pariah over here

we didnt exactly embrace him early on in his career.

the crowd were cheering for bruno in their fight not lennox.

[Counter-puncher]

'pariah'??? i don't think so.

[dekker88]

'pariah'??? i don't think so.

pariah is a bit over the top i agree...

[Dioufy]

I think he's a cock, but if I'm honest, my opinion is based on his internet exploits, not how he comes across on camera.

Is that fair?

[Scottrf]

I think he's a cock, but if I'm honest, my opinion is based on his internet exploits, not how he comes across on camera.

Is that fair?

You are entitled to your opinion however it's formed but I think you would struggle to find someone on Twitter who wasn't a cock! ;;-)
I feel he comes across OK in interviews though when I've seen him but can't deny he says some stupid things online.

[Dioufy]

That's why I am not a Twitter.

Basic human logic lesson coming up.

People on Twitter = cocks. Dioufy not on Twitter = not a cock.

[ourkid1984]

I would say he's respected for his boxing skills and determination but not the best with PR so don't get him many friends.

His family and friends that follow him around are the worse ones though.

[tonyevs]

As soon as Khan opens his mouth - or types something for the internet - he betrays himself as being seriously thick.

Ability wise. He is very good ... brilliant maybe.
Maybe his chin is not as fragile as earlier on? ... but it hasn`t yet been tested since the Prescot fight ... so nobody can say with any certainty if it really has improved at the higher weight .. but he will never possess a granite chin regardless.

Like or dislike?
I dislike him. Nothing to do with race as some ignorant racists try to make out ... because why does it have to be about race if you like a boxer or not? surely the person has to be racist to suggest such a racist reason in the first place ..

[Alba]

i thiubnk he used to be quite goosd to watched when he was fightign handpicked and fighters who were not fighting atthere optimum weight if iam honest .Now he is boxing with roach he has become a bit boring ,almost wlad like in his defence of his chin

i cant flaw his heart and his desire though just htink hes not as exciting as he used to be as he is always firstly protecting his chin,secondly fighting .

[charlieb]

I've never really held Khan's stupidity against him. He's not building feckin' rockets is he.

He doesn't have the charm of a Hatton or Bruno, his fame, whatever it weighs in at, is almost solely down to being a successful young chap in Beijing.

I don't care if he comes across as a bit of a numpty when he's not scrappin', I don't detect any real malice outside of being a bit young and thick.

What does matter to me though is that he got absolutely smashed to pieces in less than a round and had the intestinal fortitude/self belief to rise up and correct himself. That takes real character.

Fair enough he's steered clear of murderous punchers up until now, but it's not as though he's been knockin' over stiffs.

I like Khan, I hope he does well this Saturday. Good fighter, even if he is a bit of a chav.

Edit: Sydney, not Beijing! Christ, time flies.

[whiskey]

Some Facts:-

Strip away all of the hoopla and you have a boxer who faced none of his domestic peers at super feather or lightweight.

Who has been floored in 25% of his fights and knocked unconcious in 60 seconds by someone who is now 3W 2L since that night against lesser opposition.

A title opportunity was 'purchased' against arguably the weakest belt holder in Kotelnik (Amir's words were World's worst champion)

Relocated Stateside and since fought journeyman Oisin Fagan (3W 2L since) Dmitri Salita (only his 2nd 12 rounder) and then he stopped Paulie Malignaggi in 11th round on his feet (Paulie had lost 2 of his previous 4 entering fight and not had a ko since 7 years and 18 fights).

[charlieb]

Some Facts:-

Strip away all of the hoopla and you have a boxer who faced none of his domestic peers at super feather or lightweight.

Who has been floored in 25% of his fights and knocked unconcious in 60 seconds by someone who is now 3W 2L since that night against lesser opposition.

A title opportunity was 'purchased' against arguably the weakest belt holder in Kotelnik (Amir's words were World's worst champion)

Relocated Stateside and since fought journeyman Oisin Fagan (3W 2L since) Dmitri Salita (only his 2nd 12 rounder) and then he stopped Paulie Malignaggi in 11th round on his feet (Paulie had lost 2 of his previous 4 entering fight and not had a ko since 7 years and 18 fights).

Clearly looking at this from a 'glass half empty' standpoint then?

I'd also switch out 'hoopla' for 'objectivity'.

[freddydoesdallas]

For me he's still a young fighter with it all to prove. He's had his recovery from the Prescott affair but hasn't shown he is anywhere near world class yet. That starts now

[yiddo14]

i stopped reading when it told me that Lennox Lewis was a pariah over here

Yep, me too.

Lennox left the UK for Canada because he was 12 years old and his mum was moving there!!!

What a bastard!

Also, the majority of the public were cheering for Bruno but the majority of the public are generally idiots who know jack about the sport. Bruno was very likeable but I remember plenty cheering for Lennox too. The split between genuine boxing fans(which make up about 25% of a crowd at a big fight in Britain at the very most)was a lot closer.

[Captain Hook]

Decent guy, bit thick, great boxer....

[dekker88]

i stopped reading when it told me that Lennox Lewis was a pariah over here

Yep, me too.

Lennox left the UK for Canada because he was 12 years old and his mum was moving there!!!

What a bastard!

Also, the majority of the public were cheering for Bruno but the majority of the public are generally idiots who know jack about the sport. Bruno was very likeable but I remember plenty cheering for Lennox too. The split between genuine boxing fans(which make up about 25% of a crowd at a big fight in Britain at the very most)was a lot closer.

he fought for canada mate.

lennox is probably one of my favorite fighters of all time but it was only the turn of the century that people started to totally accept him as a brit.

[Counter-puncher]

Some Facts:-

Strip away all of the hoopla and you have a boxer who faced none of his domestic peers at super feather or lightweight.

.

yeah, i mean, this khan fella, if only he'd fought the soon-to-retire Thaxton, at a weight below his now-established weight, and his legacy will always be in question until he fights the still-unproven-even-at-euro-level and totally-unproven-at-140 John Murray

and then clowns like you, even if he had fought and beat Thaxton, Murray, and two weight world champ lee mcallister, would be fvcking flocking on here saying he'd feasted on an aging and shot fighter/ undersized career fvckin lightweight/ someone clearly too scottish to be effective at world level

or better yet and still more ridiculous khan never faced any domestic peers at 130lbs. i respecfully what the fck that has got to do with anything?

absolutely pathetic your desperation to slag khan off is transparent as fvck

[Scottrf]

Of course Khan can't win. He was avoiding Maidana and if he wins he beat the one dimensional Maidana. But it's like that for the best in the sport for some people, he can't expect special treatment.