By Edward Chaykovsky
Top Rank's CEO Bob Arum expressed some very strong words when discussing the possibility of Amir Khan being a potential fall opponent for the returning eight division world champion, Manny Pacquiao.
Pacquiao retired back in April after winning a twelve round decision over Timothy Bradley in their trilogy fight at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. The Filipino superstar is now getting the itch to return to the ring and Arum is working out the particulars.
Earlier in the year, Khan was a frontrunner candidate to face Pacquiao on the April date. The fight had a good storyline, as the two of them had trained side by side for a few years when Khan was being handled by Freddie Roach. Khan left Roach in 2012 and hired Virgil Hunter.
But during those negotiations, Arum claimed Khan was requesting a very big price tag for his services.
When Bradley was selected for Pacquiao, Khan made a decision to move up by eight pounds to challenge Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez for the WBC middleweight title in the main event of an HBO Pay-Per-View. Khan vs. Canelo was the first boxing event to take place at the newly constructed T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Arum says the event bombed, both in tickets and on pay-per-view - because Khan overvalues his worth in the American market. He says Khan is difficult to negotiate with, because he holds himself on a very high pedestal when it comes to monetary value.
“Amir Khan means absolutely nothing in the United States,” Arum told Gareth Davies Telegraph Sport. “He brought over no people for the Canelo fight. He saved the Brits a lot of agony.
“He is not a draw on pay-per-view in England. He is looked upon on both sides of the pond as yesterday’s news, and yet he refuses to recognize that and feels that his value is very, very high, which it is not."
