By Terence Dooley
Amir Khan told Sky Sports that he has put the split with conditioning coach Alex Ariza behind him as he moves forward with the next defence of his WBA light-welterweight title. Ariza, however, has decided to renew hostilities with Team Khan. Ariza told The Daily Telegraph that Khan owes him money, Alex also had a blast at Amir's father, Shan Khan.
“I was surprised by what happened, but it was nothing to do with Amir. His father has just shown his lack of experience of dealing inside boxing. I understand Amir is his meal ticket and he does not want to go back to driving cabs for a living. Freddie [Roach] is surprised. Amir will still be working with Freddie. But they still haven’t paid me for preparing Amir for the fight against Marcos Maidana. We have a contract," said Ariza.
Amir insists that his team have acted properly, maintaining that the split with Ariza was handled professionally and with the full knowledge of Roach. Rick Reeno broke the full story last weekend. Both parties have now had their say and one thing is for certain, Alex will not feature in Amir's corner at the MEN Arena, Manchester on April 16th. Freddie Roach will continue to train Khan and is lining up a new conditioning coach for his charge. Most boxing fans have switched their interest to the opposite corner as the race to meet Amir continues apace.
Team Khan have told BoxingScene that they are exploring all possibilities. They are keen to ensure they have everything in place before revealing the name of Amir's third title challenger.
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