Amir Khan’s mooted fight with Floyd Mayweather moved a step closer overnight as Devon Alexander’s self-imposed Oct. 7 deadline passed without a bout being agreed with the Brit.
Khan had been expected to fight Alexander for the IBF welterweight belt on Dec. 7, but he was told by the American to give him at least two months to prepare.
By the close of business on Monday, Oct. 7, still no official agreement had been struck, and David Anderson of the Daily Mirror says the clash is off:
Amir Khan will not fight again this year as his camp try to finalise a superfight with Floyd Mayweather Jnr.
Khan's mooted December 7 clash with IBF welterweight champ Devon Alexander in New York has been shelved as the Englishman instead chases Mayweather.
The Alexander vs. Khan talks had stalled due to a lack of venue, with plans for a Dubai showdown failing to come to fruition.
Alexander tweeted on Friday:
It was then reported that the identity of his opponent may have changed:
Jeff Powell of the Daily Mail broke news last week that Khan will fight Mayweather on May 3 of next year, scrapping plans to take on Alexander for his world title.
However, confusion reigned when the camps of Khan and Mayweather then played down that story, per Sky Sports, prompting Alexander's trainer Kevin Cunningham to put a timeline on negotiations, per Dan Rafael of ESPN:
If we don't have eight weeks to prepare, we're not taking the fight Dec. 7. Devon is a world champion, and if he don't have eight weeks to prepare, he won't be fighting anybody. I don't know what this bulls--- is from Khan, that he is eyeing us. One minute they want to fight us, one minute they don't. But I've been told that it's highly unlikely that we'll be fighting Khan.
Now that the deadline has passed, it seems ever more clear that Khan will not fight Alexander on the proposed Dec. 7 date.
Powell is one of the most trusted boxing journalists in the UK and has a substantial reputation resting on his claim that the Mayweather vs. Khan bout will happen in May 2014.
The current denials and cloak-and-dagger noises coming from the two camps are likely to be aimed at keeping the fight under lock and key until an official announcement is made.
Mayweather is the biggest news in boxing; he is flamboyant, a money-making machine and will control the timing of his next fight declaration.
Khan stands to make a fortune by fighting him, so it is understandable he would not risk that once-in-a-lifetime opportunity by taking on Alexander first.
When the time is right, the Mayweather enterprise will determine the scene and time of his next fight announcement.
The opponent may not be Khan, but given Powell's standing as a journalist, it more than likely will be.
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