Amir can't - why Khan will never be world champion
I reflected in my last boxing piece on how the sport was on the up in
However, we shouldn't be too disheartened. Joe Calzaghe has the chance to again prove his class stateside in his November showdown with Roy Jones Jr and we should share David Haye's own faith that he can take the bare heavyweight division by storm.
Ricky Hatton should claim some
There is also the British boxing team's success in
The middleweight known as 'Chunky' to his friends needs only to use Audley Harrison as a warning against complacency should he choose to go professional.
He of course does not deserve the scorn poured on him since being knocked out by Breidis Prescott, falling victim to the British 'build them up and knock them down' culture, but the fact remains that his inability to take a punch will block his path to a world title.Khan has frustrated his British peers in avoiding competitive domestic clashes, no doubt having his fingers burnt by the problems Willie Limond and Michael Gomez gave him in defeat.
Unfortunately for Khan he will now surely have to go down this route and accept a challenge from Jon Thaxton, Martin Gethin or John Murray, as his damaged reputation means a high-profile fight with an overseas star is unlikely. Those expecting a meeting with Manny Pacquiao - perhaps the best pound-for-pounder in the world - are living in a fantasy world.
At least these unrealistic expectations, which Khan's camp have helped fuel, will now be dampened. He must forget about a world belt and concentrate on becoming the best domestically. This is a tough target in itself and I wonder whether one more good punch from Murray or Gethin will signal the beginning of the end for
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