Thurman: Khan Took 'Easier' Canelo, Brook Tougher For Him

By Edward Chaykovsky

WBA welterweight champion Keith 'One Time' Thurman is going to create a lot of debate with is most recent statements, explaining his belief that Amir Khan (31-3, 19KOs) took the less challenging fight on May 7th, when the British star moves up by eight pounds to challenge Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez (46-1-1, 32KOs) at a catch-weight of 155-pounds.

They agreed on 155, where Canelo has fought for two years, in order to keep the WBC middleweight championship on the line. The fight headlines an HBO Pay-Per-View event at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Khan had another very lucrative opportunity on the table in IBF welterweight champion Kell Brook, but he found Canelo to be the more financially rewarding, and the more dangerous fight of the two.

Based on the styles, he feels Canelo is actually the easier fight for Khan.

Those in the betting world would disagree. A fight between Khan and Brook would fall in as a close 50-50 fight, with Khan likely being a slight favorite. Khan is a huge underdog with Canelo and given little to chance to win.

Thurman sees a big difference in speed between Canelo and Brook, explaining that Khan will have a better chance to win against the slower man.

"Style-wise, Canelo is not a hard fight for Khan. [Canelo is] flat-footed, he tends to be slow-handed," Thurman told Sky Sports/Behind The Gloves. "Kell Brook has a very accurate jab, an accurate straight right hand, he's 147-pounds, he moves faster with his hands and his feet, and has a similar defensive style. They both stand up straight with their hands vertically.

"Style-wise, Brook is more challenging due to his athleticism, due to the output he is able to produce in a fight. Canelo fights at a much slower pace but does have heavy hands which is quite threatening for a fighter like Khan."