The former unified super lightweight champion faces Canelo Alvarez on May 7 for the coveted WBC title, going up against a big puncher on the back of some damaging knockout losses in the past.
“It’s been tough, obviously, working on these strategies with my trainer Virgil, being more focused, because I know that one little mistake in a fight like this could get me in trouble,” said Khan.
“I’m making sure that I’m not making any mistakes from being in the ring, scoring, or being in the gym training, doing work, or even outside the ring when I’m recovering and how long I’m going to be keeping the weight on, keep my ‑ because I want to walk into this ring strong. I don’t want to be too light because by being too light, it could only ‑ it won’t make me real strong.
“I’m up against a very big middleweight fighter, which Canelo, he’s a middleweight world champion. We’re doing everything right. I mean, look, my skills are what’s going to win me this fight. I know I’m not going to be stronger than Canelo in any way. I’m not going to be thinking I’m stronger than Canelo, but I’m going to stand with him and fight with him.
“I think my skills in this fight will win me the fight, and I don’t know if the speed I have is something that ‑ I don’t think that Canelo’s experienced speed with combinations and speed with power. I think there will be a lot of people who will be ‑ I would say I will definitely shock the world come May 7th, otherwise I wouldn’t take the fight.
“I’ve been watching video of Canelo, and day after day it’s getting more and more confident that I can beat this guy. So I’m really looking forward to it, and we still have another three to four weeks left of training where I’m going to be focusing, and I’m still going to be giving 100 percent so when I do walk into that ring, I’m not only going to do myself proud, but I’m going to do my family proud, I’m going to do my country proud, and I’m going to bring back home the belt,” he added.
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