By Ruslan Chikov

Negotiations continue to name an opponent for Amir Khan's next fight on July 31 in the UK. The Reeklama paper reports that Khan made a request to Golden Boy Promotions to make him a fight with Marcos Maidana. The request was turned down because Maidana's handlers say the fighter is still dealing with a back injury and won't recover in time to have a sufficient training period for the fight.  

The same back injury caused Maidana to withdraw from two scheduled meetings with WBO junior welterweight champion Timothy Bradley.

"I wanted to fight him [Maidana]. They say he's injured," Khan was quoted as saying.

The opponents being considered are Michael Katsidis and Joel Casamayor. The management of Katsidis are not confident of their chances to secure a sufficient offer to fight Khan. Casamayor may become the lucky choice.