Why did Amir Khan move to USA? Do UK fans not respect him?

[Jake Hughes]

This does sound like a troll post to me .....

However, to answer the question .... Amir Khan had massive public support following the Olympics.

So did Audley Harrison, although both have seen a decline in their popularity - even though Khan has been successful.

Previous comments have indicated possible reasons, and I genuinely do not think that it is a race issue. When you look back over the last 10 years or so and see which boxers have transcended the sport and had massive crossover appeal you are looking at Hatton, Audley, Khan, Naz, Nigel Benn, Chris Eubank, Frank Bruno etc. etc. so you can't tell me that race/colour/religion is a factor.

At the end of the day, Khan constantly comes across as a proper bell end, and this is the reason his popularity has declined.

Totally agree with everything said but, as you also say, it wasn't always this way with him and I firmly believe in his inherent goodness. Their was plenty of vitriol spouted against all of the above mentioned boxers, but we forget that the proliferation of such media’s as this one and thousands more where the venting of opinions from absolutely everyone from all sides just did not exist to a greater or lesser extent back then.

I'm afraid to say most definitely that Benn and Eubank and Bruno would tell you of race/colour being a strong negative factor in their careers as all have all openly discussed this and written about it. For sure Errol Christie and Herol Graham would, and recently have, add to the argument.

It's easy to look back and maybe forget the initial dislike shown for those that eventually became national treasures.
There is no reason that with continued good showings, that a turn of affections both for Amir Khan and from Amir Khan cannot happen.

[Crazyboy]

yes!!!!!! Bangers and mash tonight!!!

What's everyone else having???

[zero]

I think he has lost quite a lot of British support (and worldwide support) due to his childish antics on social networking sites and some of his interviews. Amir is a great talent and a nice guy but he needs to be a bit more careful with what he says on the internet and during interviews. He also needs a better PR advisor.

His extensive charitable work does not get much media attention but his childish antics are well publicised. His antics after the Peterson fight were also deemed rather unsavoury and somewhat childish.

I think this sums it up nicely, he's an deluded idiot when talking to the press.

[Emmseegee]

Its nothing to do with religion or colour, i dont have one single bit of racism in me and I quite dislike Khan.

I disliked him since the Limond fight when he showed no class in interviews afterwards, I disliked how he chopped and changed trainers at every opportunity, disliked how he repeatedly drops in mayweathers name, how he acted after the Peterson fight, dislike the way he beat Barrera and acted as if it was a good win against a man at the top of his game. I could go on for a while.

Its a shame that someone so talented finds it hard to get the love of the general public but there is absolutely no way its got anything to do with the colour of his skin

[johnnygreaves]

Inteteresting thread- but look it's simple - I'm Irish and while being a boxing fan mostly follow and invest my hopes in Matt Macklin, Tyson Fury, Lee, Fitzgerald and so on. Sorry if that int politically correct but it's true! Khan is seen by many Brits as a Muslim fighter not a British fighter. He even said if he were white he would be a superstar with unanimous support - like hatton! Britain has a very different situation than the USA regarding anti Muslim stuff - they haven't got the same Muslim areas of city's and due to the size of America domestic anti Muslim stuff ain't the same. And khan will never have big enough profile in USA for his religion to become a major problem but in a small country like Britain it is different. Yes he moved to USA for money and to be closer to roach but you can't ignore the racist abuse he suffered - especially in places like Glasgow and Manchester!

To be fair.i boxed on the bill when khan boxed,I think Lawton at Nottingham arena.khan and his Muslim fans never suffered abuse.they gave it out.their behaviour was shocking.and the police did absolutely nothing about it.see that's the thing with this racist crap.some think it only goes one way.in east London.even all over Britain.the only racist abuse I see is aimed at the white Brits.every black or Asian that acts like a cock then plays the race card when people start disliking them for being , A COCK!

[bigjack]

Its nothing to do with religion or colour, i dont have one single bit of racism in me and I quite dislike Khan.

I disliked him since the Limond fight when he showed no class in interviews afterwards, I disliked how he chopped and changed trainers at every opportunity, disliked how he repeatedly drops in mayweathers name, how he acted after the Peterson fight, dislike the way he beat Barrera and acted as if it was a good win against a man at the top of his game. I could go on for a while.

Its a shame that someone so talented finds it hard to get the love of the general public but there is absolutely no way its got anything to do with the colour of his skin

Well said,

I don't like him either for exactly the same reasons,i did like him when he was in the olympics and remember cheering when he got the silver.As it happens i can't stand Froch either and he has the same colour skin as me and i loved Hamed.

[banjo]

To be honest I'd do the same if I was a famous sportsman, why would you want to live on a dank, miserable island populated by pessimists who do nothing but whinge about the most successful ones.

The once was a time when our sportsmen were revered even if they were massively flawed - much more so than Amir - look at people like George Best and James Hunt, both pissheads, drug users, highly promiscuous and assaulted people yet people look back on them with rose tinted glasses.

Even a man who lives a squeaky clean life like Carl Froch isn't immune from the venom of the British public, "he's arrogant" they say, he'd call it self belief as would many champion sportsmen, now I'm not a Manchester United fan by any means but they unfurled a banner a couple of years back which said it all "We're not arrogant, just better"

[expe]

To be honest I'd do the same if I was a famous sportsman, why would you want to live on a dank, miserable island populated by pessimists who do nothing but whinge about the most successful ones.

The once was a time when our sportsmen were revered even if they were massively flawed - much more so than Amir - look at people like George Best and James Hunt, both pissheads, drug users, highly promiscuous and assaulted people yet people look back on them with rose tinted glasses.

Even a man who lives a squeaky clean life like Carl Froch isn't immune from the venom of the British public, "he's arrogant" they say, he'd call it self belief as would many champion sportsmen, now I'm not a Manchester United fan by any means but they unfurled a banner a couple of years back which said it all "We're not arrogant, just better"

He called himself an international superstar and said it was between him and Lennox Lewis for the best British fighter ever, that's not self belief, it's pure arrogance, whatever he thinks it might be.

[bripez]

There was a similar thread a while ago, with the usual suspects waiting to play the racism card.

Here is my opinion :

Khan is one of the very few British World Class boxers that we have. He has the skills etc. but add the fact that he likes a fight and his chin is vulnerable make him very exciting.

However ... I was in Nando's in Bolton a couple of months ago and Khan and his family walked in.

When I was leaving I saw that they had parked their cars (Range Rovers, private reg's etc.) right outside the front door in the disabled spaces when there were other spaces available.

This is why I think that he is a prick (just I think that John Terry is a prick for doing the same).

[brian13]

His family going nuts everytime he had a fighter in trouble never helped his cause.

[banjo]

To be honest I'd do the same if I was a famous sportsman, why would you want to live on a dank, miserable island populated by pessimists who do nothing but whinge about the most successful ones.

The once was a time when our sportsmen were revered even if they were massively flawed - much more so than Amir - look at people like George Best and James Hunt, both pissheads, drug users, highly promiscuous and assaulted people yet people look back on them with rose tinted glasses.

Even a man who lives a squeaky clean life like Carl Froch isn't immune from the venom of the British public, "he's arrogant" they say, he'd call it self belief as would many champion sportsmen, now I'm not a Manchester United fan by any means but they unfurled a banner a couple of years back which said it all "We're not arrogant, just better"

He called himself an international superstar and said it was between him and Lennox Lewis for the best British fighter ever, that's not self belief, it's pure arrogance, whatever he thinks it might be.

Whatever it is, bigger dickheads have copped less flack.

[Finch]

Plenty of reasons already stated but also the fact he completely ducked John Murray and Jon Thaxton, who at the time, were perfect domestic dust ups and belt holders to boot. But Khan was too arrogant to fight them.

Don't like the way he came back from the Prescott defeat, firstly by avoiding him (I can accept a come back fight or two), then fraudulently beating MAB before avoiding the lightweight world titles to fight, in his own words, the weakest world champion in Kotelnik (credit where it is due, he was sublime that night and if he fought more like that rather than trying to be too macho he might still be a champion).

Also don't like him banging the p4p card when he's no where near that level.

A little sad to say but I've never cheered so much as I did when Prescott finished him. That said, I like watching him fight as a boxer because he is super talented and involved in exciting fights.