By Terence Dooley
Brendon Smith, the trainer and manager of Michael Katsidis, has thrown his man’s name out as a possible opponent for WBA light-welterweight boss Amir Khan. Katsidis is coming off a crushing defeat at the hands of Juan Manuel Marquez yet Smith has claimed that Michael was not at his best on the night and would be a different fighter for a UK showdown against Khan.
“I believe that [Katsidis-Khan] is a fight that would absolutely fill anywhere in England, and that's a fight that would be watched all over the world, and it makes a great fight. Michael is two out of two in England, and whether Amir Khan takes that into consideration and whether he wants to try and square up for the Pommies,” revealed Smith when speaking to the Associated Press.
Katsidis went into the Marquez fight grieving the loss of his brother Stathi; Smith believes that Michael, though brave in defeat, was not at his best against the Mexican legend. Khan is coming off his biggest win to date, that sensational points win over Argentine hard man Rene Marcos Maidana. Some believe that Katsidis will provide Khan with another gut check.
Michael, however, has never been hard to hit, he would be physically smaller than Khan if he stepped up to 140lb and has lost all of his top-level fights. ‘The Great’ is unlikely to pull off a win over Khan but would be a decent and recognisable opponent should Amir’s next fight take place here in the UK.
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