Amir Khan: I will not quit

Boxer hits back at retirement jibes following shock defeat in Las Vegas

16 July 2012

Amir Khan today rejected calls for him to quit boxing following his shock knockout defeat in Las Vegas.

After the Bolton fighter was stopped in the fourth round by unbeaten American Danny Garcia, who now holds both the WBA and WBC light-welterweight belts, Britain’s world super-middleweight Carl Froch said: “Khan’s been knocked out by someone who is not touted for the top level. I would retire if that happened to me.”

However, even though he has now lost his last two fights, Khan hit back at Froch, saying: “I’m fighting better opposition and I’m a bigger name than him [Froch]. I think that’s what burns him. I’m a young fighter, I’m 25, I’m not talking about retiring. I’ve still got a lot in me.”

Khan also received timely support from David Haye, who insisted his friend will prove his critics wrong by returning to the ring stronger than ever. Fresh from his fifth-round knockout win over rival London heavyweight Dereck Chisora at Upton Park, Haye said: “People are writing Amir off but write him off at your peril.

“When Amir got knocked out by Breidis Prescott in 2008, people said he was finished, they said he was chinny, they said he had no heart. But he came back and won world titles.

“It was just an off-night against Garcia and Amir will make everybody eat their words, the same way that he did before.

“I know Amir personally. I talked to him before the Garcia fight and I talked to him afterwards. He knows what went wrong, he knows what he needs to address to become a better fighter.”

Haye also believes Khan will continue topping the big boxing bills, rather than become an undercard fighter, even though he now has three losses on his record. He said: “Amir will still get the big fights because he puts bums on seats and he can produce the goods when it counts.

“I remember the write-ups when he lost to Prescott, another unbeaten fighter at the time. But look at their careers now. Prescott is a journeyman but Amir went on to win a couple of world titles and was being groomed to fight Floyd Mayweather.

“Obviously, that fight has been pushed back now after this loss. But Amir will come back stronger, I’m positive about that.” What Haye is not so positive about is realising his ambition to fight reigning world heavyweight champion Vitali Klitschko, brother of Wladimir, to whom Haye lost last summer.

After Vitali beat Chisora four months ago, the Ukrainian’s manager, Bernd Boente, promised that the winner of a fight between Haye and Chisora would go in against his man. But Haye said: “I believe Boente didn’t believe I would fight Dereck because he is such a tough guy. But I did it, I knocked him out, so now we’ll see. But I’m not too confident that fight will happen. Vitali’s a politician and he’ll find a way to get out of the fight.”

Although Haye is desperate to face Klitschko, the former world cruiserweight champion and world heavyweight title-holder admitted today that his fourth-round victory over Chisora could be his last fight.

Haye said: “If that was my last fight, then it’s a fight I’m very proud of.”

Amir Khan: I will not quit

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