Following the disappointment of missing out on the Floyd Mayweather fight for a second time, Amir Khan is forced to pursue a different avenue for his next fight. There has been recent twitter interaction between Adrien Broner and Khan but this is something we’ve seen in late 2014 and nothing ever manifested, unfortunately. But another quality opponent that comes to mind is Chris Algieri. Though mentioning Algieri may come as a surprise to some, the New York fighter is a former WBO light welterweight champion and did fight for the WBO welterweight title in his last fight.
So how do Khan and Algieri compare to each other? Well firstly, both men have different styles. Khan possesses speed that is untouchable in the 140 and 147lb weight class. His transition from being a fighter that is willing to take a punch to throw his attacks, now sees him as a much clever boxer, avoiding staying in range of his opponent while using his speed to throw in bunches. Khan’s style is exciting and will always excite the fans. Speed, alongside timing, can destroy a fighter and that was evident when Manny Pacquiao’s speed got the better of Algieri when the pair faced each other last year.
Algieri possesses a more conservative approach while ensuring he gets his attacks in and he has the tools to give Khan problems. He acquires a slick intelligent style where he prefers to carry out his work on the outside. He uses superb footwork to dodge his opponent, utilizing his reach to jab and straight right effectively. A combination of all this may be a tough task for any opposition to fathom.
While Khan was an impressive amateur winning countless trophies his stock erupted when he won silver in the 2004 Olympics. Since then Khan burst onto the professional scene and is now a major name in British boxing and now America. Algieri on the other hand entered the pro boxing scene late turning pro at the age of 24 years old. He entered the kickboxing scene at the age of 19 and became a world champion twice consequently showing he has the know-how inside the squared circle even if it was at a different form of combat.
Both are former world champions at light welterweight although Khan looks to be more comfortable at welterweight. Amir has proved against Devon Alexander and Luis Collazo that he was suited to the weight, filling his big frame easily at the 147 weight class while Algieri struggled to make the 144lb catch weight for the Pacquiao fight; he weighed in at 144.4 when he first stepped on his scale. After undressing naked and removing a large chain he still weighed 144.2. He then had two hours to make weight, finally getting himself down to 143.8 after a struggle. Consequently a move up to welterweight may suit the New York fighter.
Khan has also fought the higher rated fighters sharing the ring with Lamont Peterson, Danny Garcia and Marcos Maidana, to name a few. Algieri fought a great fight against Russian fighter, Ruslan Provodnikov, but came seriously short against Manny Pacquiao when the pair fought in November of last year. Amir Khan gains an advantage with experience. However, Chris has done very well with fighting for two world titles in just twenty professional bouts, which proves he is no one to under estimate when it comes to the sweet science.
If this fight is made, initially, many may turn their nose up to it since Khan is expected to face “bigger name opponents” at this point in his career but it could be a battle of styles and one that should provide excitement to the fight fans. Two former world champions facing each other should be a welcoming contest and a decent matchup for both.
– Oun Abbas Hussain / @ouney86
– UK Correspondent for Behind the Gloves.