The new T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas plays host to the huge Saul “Canelo” Alvarez vs Amir Khan middleweight fight for Alvarez´ WBC World title. HBO and Golden Boy, who promote Alvarez, are keen to tell everyone that the fight is a challenge for their guy. And Khan of course, has chimed in with his impressive social media presence to help deliver the message to the masses. This is a competitive match. But the original response by boxing media and fans to the match was not so kind. The facts are that Alvarez is being criticized for fighting a man moving up two weight classes. You can give credit to Kahn for being technically sound, but when he has been hit by lightweight fighters he has come apart in fights. And against “Canelo” he is going in against a strong and well experienced fighter whose only loss in almost 50 career fights is to Floyd Mayweather Jr. Khan may have convinced himself that he can do the same thing, but he has also claimed on social media that by putting on twenty pounds he will be both stronger and faster. Middleweight 12 rounds -T-Moblie Arena – Las Vegas, Nevada – HBO Sat 5/7 Amir Khan +425 o9½ +105 Saul Alvarez -550 u9½ -125 The over/under is set at 9 1/2, and that number may warrant a second look. Khan has three career losses, One of those, a split decision against the versatile Lamont Peterson can be thrown out the window, but in the other two fights, Khan was taken out early. Breidis Prescott of Colombia took him out in less than a minute, and a more measured and methodical Danny Garcia finished him in the fourth. For “Canelo” there is very little upside in beating Khan, in that if he looks bad doing it, people will question his performance. And if he wipes Khan out, then the fight ws a mismatch to begin with. For Khan a win would be a “shock the world” kind of moment, but even extending the fight would benefit Khan. It all happens this Saturday night.
