By Terence Dooley
Amir Khan will spend the next few weeks training at his Gloves Community Centre gym in Bolton with Gallagher’s Gym head honcho Joe Gallagher before flying out to the Philippines to join Freddie Roach and Manny Pacquiao. Khan is beginning to build up his fitness ahead of a 19 May rematch with WBA and IBF light-welterweight titlist Lamont Peterson, who handed ‘King’ Khan a narrow decision defeat in Washington DC last December.
“Amir has seen what Joe does in the gym and seen that Joe’s fighters are in top condition,” said Asif Vali, Khan’s business manager, when speaking to the Manchester Evening News. “He wants to get back into boxing. It’s nearly four months since his last fight. He wants to start early to be in the best shape and where better to go?” Asif also stated that Amir is due to hook up with Roach in two weeks time.
Gallagher is delighted to be working with Amir, telling me earlier today that Khan, 26-2 (18), will build up his fitness during the next fortnight and that his presence will boost the other fighters in the gym.
“It is a chance for the lads to work alongside a guy who has won world titles,” said Gallagher when speaking over the phone to BoxingScene.com “Amir often calls into the gym. When we was looking for a new place last year [after moving on from their Denton base], Amir read about it and offered us the use of Gloves Gym because he knew the lads had big fights coming up. It was a mate helping his mates and Amir never forgot his roots. Now we can help him before he flies out to train with Freddie for the Peterson rematch.”
Gallagher’s Gym currently boasts British champions in lightweight titlist Anthony Crolla and super-bantamweight boss Scott Quigg; the Bolton-based facility is also home to a mixture of contenders such as Paul, Stephen and Liam Smith plus recent addition Michael Jennings as well as John and Joe Murray. Khan’s decision to train shoulder-to-shoulder with his peers over the next fortnight will be hugely beneficial to the 25-year-old and a boost for Gallagher’s rapidly expanding stable.
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