Chris Algieri is not considered a dangerous puncher, but that doesn't mean he's not a dangerous opponent for Amir Khan, who has his sights set on fighting Floyd Mayweather Jr. in the fall. The British boxer said he's not taking Algieri lightly at all ahead of their May 29 Premier Boxing Champions clash, and that Ramadan wouldn't prevent him from facing Mayweather in September.
"I have to be one step ahead and make sure I don't make any mistakes. Chris Algieri is a guy that, if you make a mistake, he's going to make you pay for it," Khan said. In the past he has made big mistakes. Khan suffered his first loss as a professional in 2008 when he was knocked out in the first round against Breidis Prescott, then was knocked out by Danny "Swift" Garcia in 2012 in the fourth round after banking the first three on the scorecards.
Those fights were all at weights below 147 pounds. While some questioned his ability to withstand welterweight punchers after being knocked out at lighter weights, Khan has looked stronger as a welterweight in two clear wins over Luis Collazo and Devon Alexander. Against Algieri, he'll be in with a boxer, not a puncher.
Algieri was an unbeaten champion at junior welterweight until November 2014, when he moved up to welterweight to challenge Manny Pacquiao for Pacquiao's WBO welterweight belt. Prior to that, Algieri's biggest win was a controversial split decision win over Ruslan Provodnikov to take Provodnikov's WBO junior welterweight title. He's 20-1-0, but only has eight knockouts.
Algieri is tough; he survived two first round knockdowns in the win over Provodnikov. He's also an elusive fighter who relies on superior conditioning to run opponents ragged. The fight won't be easy for Khan, but if he hopes to face Mayweather it's a fight he must handle convincingly. Pacquiao was able to knock Algieri down six fights before he was outclassed by Mayweather, so anything short of a clear victory might spell doom for Khan's future payday.
[Express]
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