12 Jun 2019
Amir Khan’s last world title fight victory came seven years ago, but “King” is hoping a new trainer will take him back to the top of his sport once again.
Fresh from training camp in Las Vegas, Khan is preparing for his 37th career fight against Canadian-Colombian boxer Samuel Vargas. The 29-year-old has just three losses on his record and is the current WBA-NABA Welterweight title holder, having defended his title on four occasions.
Make no mistake, this is a big step up for Vargas. Having never fought outside of Canada, he will step into Arena Birmingham looking to shock the world. With three of his last four wins having come via decision, those looking for an outside bet can back Vargas to beat Khan by decision at odds of 40/1.
King Khan
For Khan, the overwhelming favourite at 1/20, nothing other than a comfortable win for the former unified light-welterweight champion is expected.
This bout is Khan’s first since knocking out Canadian Phil Lo Greco in the first-round back in April. Khan will also fight at 147lbs for the first time in three years – the last coming in Brooklyn in his win over Chris Algieri.
Banking on a Knockout
With 20 of Khan’s 32 victories have come from knockout, backing a KO victory for the Bolton fighter at 4/11 seems a sensible way to go. Khan should be especially motivated to deliver that knockout blow to an opponent who has spent the fight build up labelling him “damaged” and “over the hill”.
Victory for Khan here could set up a huge long-awaited all British fight against Kell Brook. Whilst Vargas should last longer than the 39 seconds Lo Greco managed, he has his work cut out for him against a resurgent Khan.
British Superfight on the Cards
A fight against Brook would be one of the most hotly anticipated bouts in recent British boxing history. Eddie Hearn, who promotes both fighters, looks ready to make the fight happen. It is believed Brook acknowledges he must come down to 147lbs to take on Khan.
Coming back to Saturday night, however, Vargas is certainly talking a good game. Despite Khan claiming that making particularly short work of Phil Lo Greco proves he is ‘back’, Vargas is confident that one solid punch landed on Khan’s chin will be lights out.
We’ve seen before the frailties of Khan’s chin, so he’ll need to maintain a solid defence to avoid a shock defeat. The numbers indicate there is little to separate the two boxers, which perhaps makes Saturday night a closer affair than expected. That said, we can’t see anything other than a comfortable win for Khan here.
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