Khan He Do It? Build Up to Khan vs. Barrera
Published March 9, 2009 by Martin Bean
In the most intriguing matchup so far this year, Bolton’s Amir Khan takes on the Mexican ring legend that is Marco Antonio Barrera. It’s a fantastic piece of matchmaking by Frank Warren—it’s a match that has everyone in boxing talking. Some feel Barrera is way past his best whilst others feel Khan is in way too deep.
There are arguments to back up both of points of view but everyone does agree on one thing—they simply have to watch this fight! Who could have imagined that six months after being destroyed in 54 seconds by Breidis Prescott that Amir Khan would share a ring with a such an accomplished fighter as Barrera?! It’s almost inconceivable. After all, how does straightforward win over an outclassed Oisin Fagan prepare you for a battle hardened man like Barrera?
Those who feel Barrera is past his best point to Khan’s promoter, Frank Warren. In Warren we have a man who has been at the top of boxing for almost two decades and has a reputation for making the right fights at the right time, in favour of his fighters. Remember Hatton vs. Tsyzu? Hatton was a big underdog but Warren timed that contest perfectly, enabling a younger, fitter Hatton to relentlessly wear down the inactive, ageing champion who would never fight again.
However, the cynics say that Warren is effectively ‘cashing in’ on Khan whilst he can; that the emphatic knockout defeat at the hands of Prescott showed Warren that Khan is going nowhere near genuine World Title level so he needed to make a big match like this to get a return on his investment. With intense media speculation surrounding this contest the fight is sure to be a box office success in Manchester’s MEN Arena and on Sky Box Office, who televise the event on Pay Per View in the UK.
So which argument carries more weight? Can the young pretender put the Prescott defeat behind him and put himself in line for a World Title shot? Or can Barrera bring back the glory days as he seeks to become the first Mexican fighter to claim World Titles in four weight divisions?
As an avid boxing fan I get excited at all big fights in the game but this fight has a real feeling of intrigue about it. I always have an opinion on fights and often feel quite certain of the outcome—after all, we only judge two ‘horse’ races so its natural to have a pretty strong opinion. But this fight… it has me thinking a lot. So many possibilities and so many possible different outcomes.
Keep checking back here for our full preview and betting tip, which will follow very shortly…
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