Atlas: Khan Wins Early Rounds, Will Make Mistake, Canelo Gets Him

By Edward Chaykovsky

Veteran trainer and ESPN expert analyst Teddy Atlas believes Amir Khan (31-3, 19KOs) will present a tough task in the early rounds for WBC middleweight champion Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez (46-1-1, 32KOs), before the bigger and younger man takes over in the later rounds.

The HBO Pay-Per-View fight takes place later tonight at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Khan, who fights at welterweight, is moving up by eight pounds to face Canelo at a catch-weight of 155-pounds.

Atlas would be very surprised if Khan doesn't win the early rounds, and Canelo has issues with fast fighters who know how to box.

"I would be shocked if he doesn’t win the early part of the fight, being the faster guy with faster hands, more fleet footed, more mobile. Amir not only has quicker hands and legs but he’s long and if he stays at a range, at a range that’s safe for him, it gives him a little advantage and keeps him away from the stronger, younger guy, the bigger guy," Atlas told On The Ropes Boxing Radio.

"Canelo has shown that he’s got problems with guys that can box, Lara gave him a lot of trouble, I thought Canelo lost that fight actually, and of course Mayweather gave him trouble. I feel that he’s a little slow with his feet and that Khan can exploit that early. It’s just a matter of whether Amir can keep it up, and can he do it consistently throughout the night?"

Atlas predicts that Khan will eventually make certain mistakes in the fight which are going to lead to his downfall.

"I’m going to say that Khan is going to win the early part of the fight but then as the night goes on, I’ve always seen Khan make mistakes. I’m not calling Khan a stupid fighter, I would not say that about any fighter, but I just think that he always makes mistakes," Atlas said.

"Khan always seems to falter and does the wrong things whether it’s to give up his height or whether it’s to throw too many punches at one time instead of throwing two punches and getting out. He’ll stay in there and give the guy that’s a little slower a chance to find him. Khan always makes those kinds of mistakes, he always does and I think somewhere along the line he’ll make it again and I think as the fight goes on, Canelo will get an opportunity to get to him."