As previously reported on BoxingScene.com, Amir Khan’s scheduled fight against Manny Pacquiao has been called off.
The two fighters had announced the “super fight” on Twitter at the end of February, with only the location to be determined.
A venue in the United Arab Emirates was expected to be confirmed but Pacquiao's promoter Bob Arum of Top Rank says the May 20th showdown is now “dead”.
Arum said: “(Pacquiao’s adviser) Michael (Koncz) is on his way back to meet with Manny but it’s kaddish for the UAE deal. It’s dead.
“I’m talking to him about another proposal for another fight, not Khan. Khan won’t be Manny’s next opponent.”
Both fighters tweeted last month about a date for a bout being agreed.
Pacquiao, 38, who currently holds the WBO welterweight title, continues to be trained by Freddie Roach but Khan left him in September 2012 and is now under the tutelage of Virgil Hunter.
Khan’s last fight in May 2016 was at 155lbs, when he challenged Mexico’s Saul Alvarez for the WBC middleweight title but he was knocked out in six rounds.
He has also long spoken of fighting in the UAE, where he has a southern Asian fanbase, and of his desire to test himself against either Pacquiao or Floyd Mayweather, two of the finest fighters of the modern era.
The 30-year-old is still hoping the fight takes place.
"They are still confident of the fight happening," a source from Khan's team told reporter Nick Parkinson. "If it is going to happen, something will happen [be agreed] in the next couple days. There are a group of people with businesses in the U.K. who Amir knows well, and they are handling the negotiations for the Pacquiao fight for him.
"They are still confident that it can materialise. They think the money in the UAE is not an issue. There are people in the UAE keen to have the fight on."
