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The good -
Chin - Khan showed he has a decent chin in the JWW division. He ate some huge shots from Maidana and even though he was badly hurt in the tenth, he managed to stay on his feet and win the fight. The redistribution of his body weight from the upper body to the legs, and his move up to 140 has done him wonders. Khan's chin is still suspect, but if he can absorb and survive the punches from one of boxing's biggest hitters, he has nothing to fear going into future fights.
Warrior mentality - Khan stood in the pocket with Maidana and traded with him, which for any fighter (let alone one with a bad chin) is almost verging on the suicidal. Nobody would have criticised Khan's gameplan if he got on his bike for the duration of the fight and refused to engage with the puncher. However, Khan took the fight to Maidana and came out of several exchanges on top and even buckled the Argentinian on occasion. He did start to peddle in the late rounds, however he was severely hurt and had no other choice but to go running. In spite of this, he was still throwing punches to the very end and showed the resolve of a lion. Trust me, Amir Khan is no Andre Dirrell.
Body shots - Amir Khan has a vicious body attack. He hurt Gomez with it, he hurt Malignaggi with it, and he almost knocked Maidana out with it too. It was just a shame he stopped using it after the first couple of rounds because if he landed a few more, he could have made the fight a lot easier for himself.
The bad -
Too willing to brawl - This is a fight Khan could have won easily at distance behind his jab. However, he allowed Maidana to drag him into the wrong kind of fight. This could have been bravado, showing the world that he could trade with the stronger man and come out on top, but it was a dangerous tactic and one that almost backfired. In future fights, Khan needs stay behind his jab, work the body, and then start to put combinations together when his opponents rush in or tire late. He has all the talent and all the skills in the world but he needs to use it correctly and not get dragged into brawls.
Lack of ring intelligence - Khan is improving in every fight, but he still has poor lapses in concentration and doesn't quite know how to fight under pressure. The amount of times Khan stood in front of Maidana allowing himself to be uppercutted was unbelievable and very risky. He needs to use his footwork better so he can turn and evade pressure fighters when they come in close. He got hit far too much for my liking.
Chin - Khan showed he has a decent chin in the JWW division. He ate some huge shots from Maidana and even though he was badly hurt in the tenth, he managed to stay on his feet and win the fight. The redistribution of his body weight from the upper body to the legs, and his move up to 140 has done him wonders. Khan's chin is still suspect, but if he can absorb and survive the punches from one of boxing's biggest hitters, he has nothing to fear going into future fights.
Warrior mentality - Khan stood in the pocket with Maidana and traded with him, which for any fighter (let alone one with a bad chin) is almost verging on the suicidal. Nobody would have criticised Khan's gameplan if he got on his bike for the duration of the fight and refused to engage with the puncher. However, Khan took the fight to Maidana and came out of several exchanges on top and even buckled the Argentinian on occasion. He did start to peddle in the late rounds, however he was severely hurt and had no other choice but to go running. In spite of this, he was still throwing punches to the very end and showed the resolve of a lion. Trust me, Amir Khan is no Andre Dirrell.
Body shots - Amir Khan has a vicious body attack. He hurt Gomez with it, he hurt Malignaggi with it, and he almost knocked Maidana out with it too. It was just a shame he stopped using it after the first couple of rounds because if he landed a few more, he could have made the fight a lot easier for himself.
The bad -
Too willing to brawl - This is a fight Khan could have won easily at distance behind his jab. However, he allowed Maidana to drag him into the wrong kind of fight. This could have been bravado, showing the world that he could trade with the stronger man and come out on top, but it was a dangerous tactic and one that almost backfired. In future fights, Khan needs stay behind his jab, work the body, and then start to put combinations together when his opponents rush in or tire late. He has all the talent and all the skills in the world but he needs to use it correctly and not get dragged into brawls.
Lack of ring intelligence - Khan is improving in every fight, but he still has poor lapses in concentration and doesn't quite know how to fight under pressure. The amount of times Khan stood in front of Maidana allowing himself to be uppercutted was unbelievable and very risky. He needs to use his footwork better so he can turn and evade pressure fighters when they come in close. He got hit far too much for my liking.