"He must definitely see me as a dangerous opponent if he doesn't want to fight me...I didn't even know Flody Mayweather knew who Karim Mayfield was. When he ran into Karim Mayfield, he walked past him like he was a fan. No disrespect, I like Karim, he's a good fighter, and so is Berto, but the thing is, there's levels...It seems to me he's going to be finishing off his career on a low. Who knows if Floyd is going to come back for a 50th fight? We don't know that. If he doesn't come back and he just takes this last fight at 49 when his contract finishes, who's going to have that respect for him," stated former world champion Amir Khan, who responded to Floyd Mayweather's revelation that former world champion Andre Berto and welterweight contender Karim Mayfield are the frontrunners to land the assignment of facing him when he makes his return to the ring this September. You don't want to miss what else Khan had to say!
BT: Amir, I'm sure you probably heard some of Floyd Mayweather's comments from this past weekend. What was your initial reaction when you heard him say that Andre Berto and Karim Mayfield were the two names he was considering for his September return?
AK: I mean, the first thing is that he must definitely see me as a dangerous opponent if he doesn't want to fight me. It seems like Floyd is definitely avoiding me. He's all about money, so he knows financially it's the biggest fight out there for him. It's the biggest fight out there for him and it's the most dangerous fight out there for him. I mean, everyone is talking about it already. When I was at the Hall of Fame, people were all talking about that fight. "Can Mayweather beat Khan and vice versa?" I think he knows that I've got the height, I've got the size, and I've got the speed to give him the biggest problems. He probably thinks, "Do I really need a style like Amir Khan, who's going to give me problems? Do I really need to fight him?" If he can take an easy route, which it seems like he's taking now, he thinks he can keep his undefeated record.
Floyd knows what I'm capable of. I'm a fighter and he knows what I'm capable of. When I'm up against guys who have the big name also and I'm under pressure, I perform. When up against guys who I'm supposed to walk through, I make it hard for myself because I go in there not with the same mindset. Floyd knows when Amir Khan goes into a fight knowing that he's the underdog, I always show up. I do see signs of him slowing down, getting caught more, and I really can catch him with shots and cause him problems. It seems to me he knows that and that's what's kind of making the fight not happen.
Everywhere I go in the UK, people keep asking me the question, "Why are you not fighting Floyd?" They think it's me not wanting to fight Floyd. I'm telling them, "I want the fight!" I'm a champion myself and I'm a good fighter myself. In a way, it disrespects me and my fans by him saying, "I'm going to pick someone else who I know that I'm levels above." It's definitely insulting to me and my team. I mean, he did a vote, and obviously Amir Khan wins the vote, but he still fought Maidana. I accepted that and said fine, I won't fight him, because obviously I never fought at 147, but now, by proving myself at 147, what else does Amir Khan need to do?
BT: I think most fans would probably say that when it comes to who deserves a shot against Floyd Mayweather, the name Amir Khan would come ahead of Andre Berto and Karim Mayfield.
AK: Looking at the 147-pound division, no one but me deserves the fight. I mean, you can name other names out there who might deserve the fight, but no one brings the numbers like Amir Khan. First he says it's an easy fight if he fights me, but then he goes, "I need an easy fight for my next fight," so he goes and picks someone like Berto and Karim Mayfield and doesn't even put me in there? He knows deep down that Amir Khan is going to be a tough fight. It's like he's afraid to even say my name. Whenever he goes somewhere and reporters say my name to him, he just doesn't want to comment about it. Me and Floyd have never had any run-ins. Nothing. I respect him as a fighter. We've been respectful to each other, but it seems there's something there that he's worried about. He'll talk about any other fight but Amir Khan.
I didn't even know Flody Mayweather knew who Karim Mayfield was. When he ran into Karim Mayfield, he walked past him like he was a fan. No disrespect, I like Karim, he's a good fighter, and so is Berto, but the thing is, there's levels. If Floyd wants to be remembered as a great champion and keep calling himself TBE, then he needs to stand by that. It seems to me like he's not. Fighters, towards the end of their career, it's a time when you want to prove yourself. It seems to me he's going to be finishing off his career on a low. Who knows if Floyd is going to come back for a 50th fight? We don't know that. If he doesn't come back and he just takes this last fight at 49 when his contract finishes, who's going to have that respect for him. I mean, you've got people like Sugar Ray Leonard, you've got people like Tommy Hearns, you've got former great champions, Oscar [De La Hoya] and them guys, saying the same thing, "Amir Khan has been waiting three years now for that fight when Floyd said, 'Yeah, the fight could happen.'" One day he says Amir's a great champion, he's a great fighter, he's a young, hungry fighter, but then, he doesn't mention my name. The guy he said was going to be the next Mayweather was Devon Alexander. I remember him saying those words. Well I went and I beat him. What else do I have to do? Broner was the same thing. He wanted me to fight him, but Broner didn't want to fight me. I mean, these guys don't want to fight me. I'm gonna speak to Al again. I want the fight because I want to give the boxing fans around the world the fight they want, an exciting fight. I'll tell you one thing, I'll do more than what Pacquiao did in the fight, or any other fighter who's faced Mayweather, because at the end of the day, when I come to fight, regardless of who it's against, I give it 100%. I don't think you'll ever see Amir Khan in a boring fight, and that's what Mayweather is scared of, because he knows I have an engine in me and I will keep coming.
He wants to be remembered as the best out there, but he's going to be finishing on a low after the Manny Pacquiao fight. No disrespect to the guy he's fighting next. Does he want to want to be remembered as a great champion or does he just want to be remembered as a guy who was unbeaten. Me, I fight guys at their peak. Floyd's got a guy in front of him like me who's at his peak and who's not scared of him, not worried about him, and financially, I'm a very secure guy myself. I made a lot of money in this sport myself, so it has nothing to do with the money. It's all about getting that big fight and giving the fans what they want. The fight is going to definitely be an explosive fight and what a way to end Floyd's career than to put him in a real fight. Look, Mayweather's going to pick who he wants to fight, fine, he has the power to do that, but in a way, he's disrespecting the fans by not giving them a fight that they want, and on top of that, he's disrespecting his own legacy by going out on a low.
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