Alex Arthur Promised Barrera-Khan Winner If He Wins His Initial Two Fights At Lightweight

10-02-09 – by James Slater — The British lightweight scene is exciting enough as it is right now – what with Amir Khan, John Murray and Jon Thaxton to name just three all engaging in good quality and exciting fights. But the weight class can now add the name of Scottish fighter “Amazing” Alex Arthur to its ranks. Moving up to have his 135-pound debut against an as yet TBA opponent on March 27th on the same bill as the Ricky Burns-Michael Gomez clash, the former WBO super-featherweight champion has been promised the winner of the eagerly awaited Amir Khan-Marco Antonio Barrera fight..

Should he win on March 27th and then in his next bout at lightweight, the 30-year-old has been told by promoter Frank Warren that he will face the winner of the March 14th bout after that.

Speaking with newspaper The Scotsman, Arthur told of his good news.

“I am a motivational fighter so I was delighted when Frank told me,” Arthur said. “I don’t care who wins as I’m confident that I’d beat either of them. I think I would punch too hard for Khan whose frailty to big punches was exposed by Colombian Breidis Prescott on the under-card of my losing fight against Nicky Cook in Manchester.

“And while most people would make me an underdog against Barrera, I think I could beat him too.”

Fans seem divided as to who will win out of Khan and the Mexican legend, but an Arthur fight against either guy would be a big attraction in the UK – as, of course, is the Khan-Barrera crossroads match. Of course, practically every British fighter who is anywhere near close to Khan’s weight class wants to fight the former Olympian, and Arthur is no exception. Either way, things will be exciting for Britain’s lightweights well into the near future now that the 30-year-old from Edinburgh has joined the division.

We will see A: the great Barrera take on yet another Brit, or B: a domestic clash between Arthur and Khan that could well develop into a mini-classic. Arthur may be proven correct with regards to what he says about his power being too much for Khan, but he has also suffered a stoppage loss himself – to the tough Michael Gomez back in 2003 – so if the two do meet the fans and experts will likely be divided as to the fight’s outcome.

If Arthur winds up facing Barrera, however, especially if it’s a Barrera who has just smashed Khan to a quick defeat, the majority will surely favour the future Hall of Famer to stop his second British fighter in a row.

However it ends up, and whoever the 26-2(19) Arthur faces, it will be great for British boxing.