By James Slater: Are British fighters, or at least reigning world championship fighters from Britain, becoming more and more outspoken, even arrogant? We have David Haye, a heavy points loser to Waldimir Klitschko last time out, calling Vitali a “scared rabbit,” and now we have Amir Khan lashing out at Floyd Mayweather Junior and calling him “chicken.”
Years ago, during the late great Sir Henry Cooper’s time at the top, the British approach was always one of a gentlemanly nature, with no trash-talking (or whatever it was called way back then) of any kind to be heard. Things sure have changed!
Anyway, Khan, the reigning WBA and IBF 140-pound champion, in another seemingly desperate attempt (at least in my view) at getting the great “Money” Mayweather to agree to fight him, has flat-out claimed the unbeaten 41-0 master is “doing everything” to avoid him.
“In my opinion, Mayweather is a chicken,” Khan told U.K tabloid The Sun. “He is doing everything to avoid me just as he did everything to avoid fighting Manny Pacquiao. I don’t want to sound cocky or arrogant but I believe the real reason for Mayweather avoiding me is that he knows I have his number. Mayweather knows if he fights me his O will go.
“All Floyd does is pick fights he knows he will win. I thought world championship boxing was about proving who is the best but if he keeps turning his back on me how can he still say he is the best?”
But why on earth does Mayweather, a welterweight, have to fight Khan, a man who has not yet boxed above 140-pounds, to prove he is “still the best?” And isn’t Mayweather two days away from a fight with the reigning WBC welterweight king, in Victor Ortiz? Has Khan actually lost the plot, or is he simply trying all the goading he can in an attempt to make Mayweather bite and agree to fight him? Hell, such an approach worked for Khan’s countryman David Haye (and may work again if Vitali agrees to defend his WBC belt against the Londoner).
With all due respect (something neither Khan nor Haye have been showing towards Mayweather and Klitschko respectively), trash-talking in boxing is something that used to be heard only in America. It seems our British stars have now fully adopted the art.