Bolton boxer Amir Khan has sensationally claimed Manny Pacquiao turned down a mouth-watering clash to fight a ‘nobody’.
Khan, 27, has long since chased a big-money fight with pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather, though ruled himself out of a potential fight taking place this year as he could not meet the American’s September fight date, due to being so close to Ramadan.
His camp instead turned to Pacquiao, Khan’s former stable mate under Freddie Roach, only for Khan’s offer to fall on deaf ears.
“I said I wanted to fight Manny Pacquiao,” he told MM. “I offered him the fight to Pacquiao’s team recently and they didn’t take it.”
Pacquiao’s management, led by boxing mogul Bob Arum, opted for the Filipino to instead face Christopher Algieri, a relatively unknown, undefeated American.
“I got my team to speak to Bob Arum and we got nothing back, and they went with Algieri,” he said.
“He’s a nobody.
“Well he’s not a nobody. You’ve got to respect him but he’s not a big name, and if Manny Pacquiao wanted to make big money in boxing he needs to fight big names.”
In May, Khan made his long-awaited move up to welterweight to face Luis Collazo, winning the fight by unanimous decision, silencing those who doubted he was able to handle the step up in weight.
Ricky Hatton, who had previously fought Collazo in 2006, called it a ‘horrible’ fight, and warned Khan ‘may come a cropper’.
Khan silenced the doubters, using his trademark hand speed combined with a new-found discipline he had worked on in his boxing hiatus, having not fought in around a year, to help him to an impressive victory over the former champion.
The performance sent shockwaves through what is possibly the most stacked division in all of boxing, with fighters such as Mayweather, Marcos Maidana, Juan Manuel Marquez, Timothy Bradley and Pacquiao all staking a claim for supremacy.
Khan believes his victory against Collazo may have worried Pacquiao, who at the age of 35, cannot have too many fight in front of him.
“Maybe that scares him, I don’t know.”
Despite the setback, Khan believes he has some big fights round the corner.
“I think the big fights will definitely still happen though,” he said.
Khan is currently in talks with Devon Alexander and Robert Guerrero for a possible clash in December.
His next possible day will likely be May of next year, which could see the Bolton boxer finally get to see his dream realised with a mouth-watering clash with Mayweather.
Sheffield fighter Kell Brook, who fights Shawn Porter on Saturday after two years out from the sport, is also keen to meet Khan for a domestic superfight in 2015.
Image courtesy of Visit Manchester, via YouTube, with thanks.
