“Mikkel was very happy with the first few rounds, but he was furious with me over my performance in the later rounds. He said bluntly that I was crap,” said Khattab who has been training alongside the former world champion.
In the corridors at the Arena Nord in Frederikshavn one could witness a heated conversation between the master and the apprentice, after Khattab laboured to a points victory over the experienced Alexey Ribchev.
“Mikkel was angry and he was right. I do not disagree. I wasn’t good enough in that fight. This must be rectified, so I’m grateful that I get to fight again so soon,” said the Danish middleweight.
“I learned a lot from the fight against Ribchev. I need to think more about what I’m doing in the ring. I spent too much energy in the first rounds trying to finish the fight and then I ran out of steam. I underestimated him and that can never ever happen again.”
“Now I have to prove that I’m a much better boxer than what the fans saw in Frederikshavn. I’m facing another experienced boxer, but this time I will show the real Khattab!”
Patrick Nielsen headlines the Nordic Fight Night on March 14 at the Ballerup Super Arena in his super middleweight clash with George Tahdooahnippah. The show also features Danish featherweight Dennis Ceylan in a must win fight against former world champion Dmitry Kirillov. All the action will be shown live TV3 + and TV3 Sport 2 in Denmark. Tickets are available via billetlugen.dk.