By Marcus Richardson: Amir Khan (26-2, 18 KO’s) will be looking to alter his fighting style for his May 19th rematch against IBF/WBA light welterweight champion Lamont Peterson (30-1-1, 15 KO’s) at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Khan says he’s going to try and keep Peterson from landing shots by being “slicker,” according to RingTV.
Khan said “Next time I’m going to be slicker…I’m not going to go out there and make mistakes.”
Khan did make a bunch of mistakes in the Peterson fight, such as covering up with his back against the ropes. This is the same turtle shell defense that former IBF middleweight champion Arthur Abraham likes to use in his fights. While it works for Abraham due to his ability to block virtually all head shots thrown at him while he’s covering up, it wasn’t working well for Khan last December because Peterson was still able to land a lot of body and head shots through Khan’s card. But more importantly, Khan gave away rounds by spending too much time covering up and not enough time throwing shots.
Khan will use more movement to keep Peterson from landing. That’s only way I can imagine Khan being slick. He’s not going to stand in front of Peterson and take risks like he did last time. Khan will hit and move, and use different tactics like shoving and holding to keep Peterson from landing even when he does catch up to Khan.
Khan’s promoter Freddie Roach will likely tell Khan to hold Peterson when he gets in close rather than letting Peterson get his shots off. It’s going to likely be Khan hitting with a flurry of shots and then moving away quickly before Peterson can throw anything. Khan will also likely use his jab a lot on the outside to score points and keep his distance from Peterson.