12 lBOXING NEWSlJANUARY 11, 2018 http://www.boxingnewsonline.net
Y the time Amir Khan steps back in
the ring almost two years will have
gone by since he was transformed into
a fallen statue by the fists of Mexican
Saul Alvarez.
Khan, who this week announced
a deal with Matchroom and Sky
Sports, believes he has he can
capture a third world title, despite not holding a
belt since 2011.
The Bolton star, who moved up in weight to
challenge the man they call Canelo, walked
onto a thunderous looping right hand in round
six and the successes he had enjoyed in the
previous five sessions were rendered meaningless.
Khan needed time to heal. It was a devastating
finale and set Alvarez on his way towards the Gennady
Golovkin showpiece.
And while that Alvarez blow wreaked havoc with
Khan’s senses, things began to spiral out of control
away from the ring. He’d suffered hand damage
that required operations, his marriage was on theverge of collapse via social media, he was at war with his
old team and then with family and friends.
Then, however, he began to mend rifts. His hand was
finally fixed, his marriage started to work out and he and
wife Faryal are now expecting their second child.
But Khan was already on the move. The Bolton man,
who has spent much of his top-flight career fighting
and training in the USA, travelled Down Under
where he adopted a starring role on ITV’s I’m A
Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here.
In the weeks running up to Christmas, Amir
became must-see TV for those who follow the
show, screaming and squealing his way through
trials that tackled his phobias of snakes and
creepy crawlies while chugging down shots of
whisked vomit fruit and blended goats liver like a
retired fighter propping up the bar in middle age.
“I just needed to get away and refocus on what I want to
do in life,” Khan said of his decision to go into the
jungle. “A lot of people would go on there to build
their career but I went on there to let people know
who the real me is. ➤B
★AMIR★
KHANBIG FEATUREI SHOULD NEVER HAVE GONE INTO THE CANELO FIGHT
BECAUSE, PHYSICALLY, HE WAS TOO BIG FOR ME”
Amir Khan, now 31 and fresh out of the jungle, tells Tris Dixon he has
something to prove as he plots a return to ring in March but admits – after a
long and at times punishing career – that he is entering the ‘final moments’
of his life as a boxer
Photo: JOSHUA DAHL/USA TODAY SPORTS