Virgil Hunter, head trainer for former world champion Amir Khan (31-4, 19 KOs), does not view his boxer's upcoming opponent, Phil Lo Greco (28-3, 15 KOs), as a walkover.
Khan and Lo Greco will collide on April 21 at the Echo Arena in Liverpool.
The fight will be the first for Khan since he was knocked out in the sixth round of his catch-weight bout with Saul "Canelo" Alvarez in May of 2016 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Hunter is very familiar with Lo Greco's credentials as an amateur and as a pro.
He's reviewed Lo Greco's past bouts, specifically his defeats to top welterweight talents like Errol Spence and Shawn Porter.
“He’s fought [Errol] Spence, he’s fought [Shawn] Porter, went the distance with Porter. That right there alone in the Porter fight suggest toughness,” Hunter said to Boxing News.
“He took the Spence fight on short notice so you can’t really give an accurate assessment about that. He is bringing credentials. So you can’t look at him as an opponent. You have to look at him as a live fighter. He can call up a fight, with his background and amateur pedigree, he can call up a great fight if he’s motivated enough and make it a real, tough night. So I don’t consider him an opponent at all.”
Khan is calling this the final the run of his pro career.
He wants to do at least three fights this year, starting with Lo Greco, and then a fight in the summer, and then a much bigger fight to close out the year - which may or may not come against his UK rival Kell Brook.
“I’m here for him. It’s his career. I can’t want it more than he wants. If he wants it bad, if he wants it more than anything and he wants to dedicate and commit to the next couple of years, then I’ll support him,” Hunter said.
“If he stimulates me, he definitely will be stimulated in return.”
