By Carlos Boogs
Former world champion Amir Khan (31-4, 19KOs) is planning to fight three times in 2017. He only saw action once in 2016.
The British fighter was last seen in May, when he moved up by eight pounds to challenge thenWBC middleweight champion Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez at a catch-weight of 155-pounds. Khan started off fast and some had him ahead when the end came in the sixth round. One massive shot put Khan down and out for the count.
It appears Khan will be taking the rest of the year off and has no plans to fight until January of 2017.
Khan has recently been discussing the possibility of facing UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor, but nobody actually believes that fight will happen. Khan took to the social networks to announce that he was gunning for three fights next year.
"Want to be back in the ring around January. Big fights next year. Who do you think? I'll be ready.... January, May, December. Three fights [in] 2017," Khan stated.
Khan has averaged one fight a year for the last two years. The last time he fought three times in a single year was back in 2011, when he fought Paul McCloskey, Zab Judah and Lamont Peterson.
Despite his knockout loss to Canelo, Khan is still the mandatory challenger to WBC welterweight champion Danny Garcia. The fight has to happen by next year. Garcia is reportedly going to take a voluntary fight in October, with Andre Berto being listed as the frontrunner. Khan and Berto are gym-mates and share the same trainer in Virgil Hunter.
Garcia upset Khan with a fourth round knockout in 2012 when they were both junior welterweight champions. Khan has been pushing to get Garcia in the ring for a second time, but the Philadelphia fighter has expressed very little interest in facing Khan for a second time.