Former junior welterweight title holder, Amir Khan is moving up to the welterweight division with his next fight scheduled to be against Devon Alexander according to Thacover2.
Make no mistake about it, Khan is moving up in weight because he wants in on the Floyd Mayweather Jr. cash out parade.
“I think I’ll be a lot more comfortable at 147,” Khan told ESPN.com. “I’ve been struggling to make the weight. I’ve been at 140 for a long time (since mid-2009). So I’ll be looking to fight at 147.”
“I’ll be a lot stronger at 147, a lot more confident,” Khan said. “Look at guys like (lightweight titlist) Adrien Broner and (Robert) Guerrero. They moved up two weight classes and fought for world titles and you see their confidence. You can do a lot more in training. You can build your strength and not always be worried about the weight. I think I’ll have a lot more power.”
Khan was married this past Friday and will take some time off to enjoy being a husband, and to also observe the Muslim holy month of Ramadan this summer, after which he will begin training again.
Khan is aware that Mayweather will take on Canelo Alvarez in September, in what will be the second of a 6 fight deal Mayweather signed with Showtime/CBS.
Amir Khan would like to be opponent number three if everything works out.
“If your goal is to fight Floyd at some point, obviously, the action is at 147 and you might as well go up and introduce yourself in that weight class, where he could actually be stronger at the higher weight,” Schaefer said. “Amir feels that will be the case with him. He won’t have to worry about making weight so much and he can focus on training. He is excited to move up to 147. He realizes there are tremendous opportunities.”
“When we are young the dream is to be world champion and now the dream is to fight and beat Floyd Mayweather,” Khan said. “Once you beat Floyd Mayweather you become pound-for-pound and that’s what everyone aims for. But you have to be in that weight division to be noticed. Everywhere I’ve been going people ask me when I’m fighting Floyd. Maybe I got knocked out or didn’t perform well in some fights, but my style would be exciting to watch against him.
“He has five fights left. Five more opponents. Who brings him money, excitement, recognition and global recognition? I’ve been in the U.K., the European, American and Middle Eastern markets. He’ll make a lot of money with Canelo Alvarez, but I can’t think of any other boxer with as big of a following or pull that I have that he can make a fight with.”