This weekend, WBA jr. welterweight champion Amir Khan squares off against the hard-hitting Marcos Maidana in what many consider to be the toughest fight thus far in his career. It may very well end up being his most important fight as well, because should he won, a showdown with undefeated pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather Jr. looms on the horizon. "I would love to fight Mayweather," Khan would tell the Daily Mail back in September when he first made the suggestion of a potential match-up. Although fans may have first laughed at the notion, there stands an extremely good chance that Amir Khan could indeed be Floyd Mayweather's next opponent. Seeing as how Pacquiao is already targeting Shane Mosley for April 16 clash, in many ways, Khan is the perfect choice for Mayweather if he decides to return to the ring in the first half of 2011.
First and foremost, Khan himself has been very vocal in expressing his opinion that he would be the one to hand Floyd Mayweather his first defeat. "I believe I can end his unbeaten record," he stated with confidence when first asked about the possibility of the fight. "If you want to be the best fighter in the world you have to fight the best in the world and I think it's a fight people want to see," Khan reiterated in an interview with Seen magazine, "Ricky Hatton failed when he fought for the pound for pound title and I'm sure that I can go there and become the pound for pound fighter in the world, the best fighter and bring that title back to England." Not to mention, it's a bout that offers high reward with relatively low risk, a notion that's extremely important to both Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao if neither man wants to risk the possibility of meeting each other in the future. With 17 knockouts in his 24 fights, Khan, who fights at 140 pounds, is not the biggest puncher in the world and he would no doubt be moving up in weight to face Mayweather at his natural weight of 147 pounds.
Perhaps more importantly, however, is the fact that Khan, a Muslim British native of Pakistani decent, has a diverse fanbase of both British and Muslim supporters. Although it may be the same type of "love-hate" relationship that fans shared with his childhood idol, Prince Naseem Hamed, the fact remains that Khan, whether they love him or hate him, has a strong following amongst UK fans. That fact alone won't go unnoticed by Mayweather, who experienced firsthand the love and appreciation that UK fans have for the Sweet Science in his bout with Ricky Hatton. "There are no fans like the London fans and the British fans," Mayweather has continuosly said since that fight, promising to return to England one day to showcase his talents. The point is, Khan provides a viable pay-per-view opponent that would likely help generate in excess of 1 million buys, a fact that's extremely important if Mayweather hopes to maintain his own drawing power.
The good news for Khan is that, being a Golden Boy Promotions fighter, the fight would be just as easy to make as Mayweather's bout with Mosley, assuming, of course, Khan is ready to agree to random Olympic-style drug testing. "I think it's realistic, a fight with Mayweather. If I keep on winning and doing well, it's a fight for the future. Maybe it could happen at the end of 2011. I've got a great promotion team and I know Golden Boy can make any fight happen," Khan would tell Nick Parkinson of The Daily Star just days ago. "Mayweather works with Golden Boy and my promotions CEO Richard Schaefer could get that fight made. I want to fight the big names like Mayweather and to get those I have to beat Maidana."
Before any of that can happen though, Khan will have his hands full this Saturday with Maidana, but if he's victorious, he just might get his wish if Mayweather grants it.