Bolton boxer Amir Khan has laughed off suggestions by Matchroom Sport chairman, Barry Hearn, that he should ‘hang up his gloves’ and is instead targeting a return to the welterweight division.
Following his knockout defeat at the hands of Canelo Alvarez in Vegas earlier this month, Hearn had said that he thought the Brit’s time on the boxing scene was done.
Despite a valiant effort against the destructive Alvarez in their Middleweight clash, Khan was knocked to the floor in the fifth round after a heavy blow from the Mexican.
Hearn, whose son Eddie handles the career of IBF champ Kell Brook, told reporters he would worry for the safety of Khan if he continued with his career.
“Listen, the guy has been knocked out at lightweight, he’s been knocked out at light-welterweight, now he’s been knocked out at middleweight – and he’s deciding who he’ll want to fight?” he said.
“He should retire. He should retire for his own health. These people won’t listen. He says he’s got three or four fights left in him. Does that mean three or four times he’s going to get knocked out? Because if he fights Kell Brook, he gets knocked out, and he knows that as well. We all know that.
“It’s a fight that we would all have loved to have seen, but frankly it’s gone past it’s sell-by date and Amir Khan has gone by his sell-by date as well. The only person who doesn’t know it, is Amir Khan.”
In response, Khan wrote via his Twitter feed: “Barry I’m 29 years old. I still have huge fights at welterweight” accompanied by a laughing emoji.
The fight between Khan and Brook is one which many boxing fans have been waiting for yet one which the prior has repeatedly said he is not interested in previously.
Will the fight happen now that Khan is heading back to the welterweights? Only time will tell.
