There were a lot of people who were surprised at Amir Khan’s sudden decision to withdraw from fight talks with Manny Pacquiao and his camp who claims that talks are taking a long time because the Filipino boxer is leaning more towards a rematch against Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2016.
Was it a case of insecurity or simply avoiding another disappointing wait?
It wasn’t long ago when Khan was stricken off as the main opponent of Floyd Mayweather Jr. for his farewell fight last September 12. Khan was shunned in favor or Andre Berto but the British southpaw should have known better that the move was seen by most as something else.
In short, it was not because he did not deserve to be Mayweather’s opponent. Rather it was because he was. But the whole incident may have left a forgettable experience for him and hence the reason of impulsively wanting to move on to find a fighter who was truly willing to face him.
Khan aired his disappointment at the long (something he believes is 'stalling') talks in an interview with The National.
It didn’t take long for Pacquiao promoter Bob Arum to respond to Khan’s allegations, claiming that there were no contract talks between them and the Mayweather camp. In fact, it was Arum who doused water on the initial report that Pacquiao was considering a rematch with the same man who defeated him last May 2 via unanimous decision.
For his part, Arum claims that he is busy working with Khan's attorney, Robert Davis, ironing out minor details on a possible fight between Khan and Pacquiao.
So now, Khan has decided to give fight talks one more week before moving on despite an initial announcement from Pacquiao and his camp that his official and probably last boxing opponent would be announced by November or December.
Has Khan become paranoid of possibly being shunned?
If there were actually talks or even rumors of a Mayweather vs. Pacquiao II then he should be. But the fact that Mayweather has not even responded to meager speculations should be enough to say that there is no rematch in the works.
The closest fighter linked to a possible comeback fight for Mayweather is Adrien Broner which is something that comes even from the grapevine.
Mayweather says he has retired and as far as Pacquiao and Arum are concerned, they respect that claim.
Maybe Khan could ease up a bit and move on from that forgetful shunning since it may eventually cost him a fight that he has always wanted.
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