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OBSERVE AND FIGHT: AMIR KHAN JUST MIGHT BE FLOYD MAYWEATHER'S TOUGHEST CHALLENGE

By David Kassel | December 15, 2014
OBSERVE AND FIGHT: AMIR KHAN JUST MIGHT BE FLOYD MAYWEATHER'S TOUGHEST CHALLENGE

It's Monday. Welcome back for another edition of Observe and Fight, The Boxing Observer's compilation of observations and random thoughts from the week that was in boxing. Get caught up on some of the most recent events you may have missed out on, including Floyd Mayweather calling Bob Arum out for not making the Pacquiao fight, a recap of Amir Khan's big win over Devon Alexander, the Timothy Bradley vs. Diego Chaves controversy, more boxing politics, and much more. Without further ado, check out the latest observations from the Boxing Observer, David Kassel.

Amir Khan's performance against Devon Alexander makes him Floyd Mayweather's toughest challenge. I want to be very clear, Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao is the biggest fight that can be made. I'm not saying Khan vs. Mayweather will make more money. However, I am saying that Khan, at this point in time, is the toughest opponent Mayweather can face. They are about the same size and have the same reach. Khan's stamina has improved leaps and bounds as he boxed and moved beautifully around the ring for 12 rounds. Alexander made some fundamental mistakes which allowed Khan to be so successful, but Mayweather would have trouble keeping up with Khan's combination punching. Even though Mayweather would be able to time Khan and connect with counter-punches, it would be difficult for Mayweather to keep up with Khan's punch output. I believe Khan would win some serious rounds against Mayweather and Floyd would have a difficult time getting the knockout. Khan has a legitimate chance to beat Mayweather by unanimous decision. Virgil Hunter has truly transformed Khan's game and Amir may reap the benefits if he wins the Mayweather Sweepstakes. In my opinion, I think Mayweather easily beats Pacquiao. The more I watch Amir Khan, however, the more I believe he has a legitimate shot to dethrone the pound-for-pound king.

Floyd Mayweather is finally speaking publicly about the Manny Pacquiao negotations. On Friday night, Mayweather made comments on Showtime and broke down how talks in the past between he and Pacquiao have failed. He blamed Bob Arum, and nobody else, for the fight not being made. Mayweather did make one statement that may give the other side yet another excuse as to why the fight won't come to fruition. Mayweather stated the fight must happen on Showtime. While I understand that, if Arum was telling the truth about his meetings with CBS President, Les Moonves, it shouldn't be a problem or a built-in reason for the fight not coming together. I'm still not very optimistic at this point.

Devon Alexander came to fight, but it wasn't his night. While losses always deter grand plans in boxing, Alexander's loss was not as detrimental to his career as it could have been. Khan put on a masterful performance. Alexander was going to have a tough time beating him no matter how well Devon fought. Alexander is still world class and has a lot left in the tank. He came to fight. He just ran into a better man Saturday night.

Yet another example of judges behaving badly took place Saturday night on HBO. In the main event, Timothy Bradley clearly outpointed Diego Chaves in what was a rugged affair for both men. While I don't mind if the fight was 8 rounds to 4 in favor of Bradley, I don't see how Julie Lederman could have seen 8 rounds for Chaves (and Lederman is one of the best judges in the business). Also, I can't see how Craig Metcalfe saw 6 rounds for Chaves. I don't think there was any funny business going on. I just think it was an off night for both judges. It's just a shame that Bradley will have this blemish on his record (even though the fight was scored a draw). I guess that's the boxing gods' way of repaying Bradley for his first fight with Manny Pacquiao.

2014 will be a year to forget for Mauricio Herrera. There is ABSOLUTELY NO WAY Herrera lost his fight Saturday against Jose Benavidez Jr. While I am one of the writers who actually believed Danny Garcia beat Herrera earlier in the year, this time, I can't see any way a win for Benavidez Jr. is justified. This result was the sheer promotional influence of Top Rank and Bob Arum.

Keith Thurman proved himself to be very versatile against Leonard Bundu. Thurman showed yet another facet in his repertoire as he decided to box instead of go for the knockout. Bundu is a crafty fighter, but we all knew Thurman was never in any danger against the light-fisted Italian. Thurman is positioning himself well for a possible chance against Floyd Mayweather. He called out Marcos Maidana (the man who had 2 chances at Mayweather in 2014) after his win. I think that was a very smart move because Thurman is ready to face the Top 5 or 10 fighters in the world.

Erislandy Lara and Austin Trout both earned impressive victories last week. While the fights were not well publicized, Lara dominated former champion Ishe Smith on Friday night, while Trout won his second fight in a row, since suffering two straight losses, by knocking out Luis Grajeda on Thursday. Lara is never going to be eye candy in the ring, but he is one of the best fighters in the junior middleweight division. Trout, on the other hand, under the guidance of Barry Hunter, has an opportunity to re-establish himself as a major player at 154lbs.

Now that Abner Mares has won 2 in a row, can we please see him in the ring against Leo Santa Cruz? Mares is better suited to fight at 122lbs anyway, and fans have been clamoring for this fight for a long time. I don't see any reason this fight cannot be the co-feature on Floyd Mayweather's next undercard.

Congratulations to Andy Lee for winning the vacant WBO middleweight title! Down by 5 rounds on the scorecard, Lee landed a vicious shot to the chin of the previously undefeated Matt Korobov, stopping him in his tracks and finishing him off with a lethal combination. The fight reminded me of when Rico Ramos, down by 6 rounds on the scorecards, knocked out Akifumi Shimoda to win a world title. It's just a shame Emanuel Steward wasn't in Lee's corner to coach him to victory. However, I'm sure Steward is looking down from above and smiling.

Felix Verdejo and Jesse Hart continue to impress. Both Top Rank prospects are quickly rising up the ranks and destroying everyone in sight. The same thing happened in Philadelphia on Saturday as both fighters scored sensational knockout victories. Keep an eye on both names in the near future.

I'm not exactly excited for Friday night's light heavyweight title defense by Adonis Stevenson. Dmitry Sukhotsky did nothing to deserve a chance to win the title. I'm just hoping Stevenson dominates because the fight fans want to see Stevenson vs. Sergey Kovalev. Plain and simple.

Each week, I feature an email from a fan on Observe and Fight. This week's email comes to us from Lucky Allen regarding Keith Thurman's chances to face Floyd Mayweather in 2015...

"Keith Thurman was really impressive against Leonard Bundu on Saturday. He is finally calling out Floyd Mayweather and I think he can win. What are the realistic chances Thurman might get a chance to fight TBE (The Best Ever as Mayweather has dubbed himself)?"

That's a great question and one that is very difficult to answer at this point in time. As it stands now, Mayweather has 2 fights left on his contract before he says he will retire, although I find it very difficult to believe he won't go after a 50-0 record if the opportunity presents itself. In my mind, Thurman will have to fight Marcos Maidana, who he called out after the fight, or he has to fight 2 quality, top-10 type opponents. Another name that comes to mind is Robert Guerrero. Both are former Mayweather opponents and excellent measuring sticks. Even after Saturday night's loss, Devon Alexander is a solid measuring stick as well since he is a former world champion. If that happens, Thurman may get his opportunity in Mayweather's last fight on the Showtime contract, but I don't think he has any chance to be Mayweather's next opponent.

That's all I've got for this week. Email any questions or comments to dkassel@fighthype.com and I will answer them throughout the week. Your email may be featured in the next "Observe and Fight." Follow me on Twitter @BoxingObserver, and be sure to "Like" The Boxing Observer on Facebook.



[ Follow David Kassel on Twitter @BoxingObserver ]

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