LONDON – Amir Khan has revealed that his promoter Eddie Hearn is angry about his decision to challenge world welterweight champion Terence Crawford rather than go through with a long-awaited Battle of Britain against Kell Brook.
At the official announcement of his April 20 super-fight against the undefeated Crawford in the US, Khan said: “Eddie is p****d off that I’m not fighting Brook.
“I’ll admit that this was one of the hardest decisions of my career. The fight with Kell was very close to being made.
“Then, after the phone call came about Crawford, I kept waking up one morning thinking I would take Brook, then the next morning thinking I would fight Crawford.
“In the end, the opportunity to cement my legacy by boxing for a third world title against a man rated among the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world was too good to turn down.
“Fortunately for me, I’m not one of the many fighters who have to do what their promoter tells them. I control my own destiny.”
Khan also denied that Hearn had offered him double the $4 million he is guaranteed to fight Crawford in New York or Las Vegas to stick with Brook, saying: “It was a bit more money, but no, not much more. Anyway, the Kell fight will still be there even if, God forbid, it goes wrong for me against Crawford. Not that I think that will happen.
“I know a lot of people are saying I’ve got no chance against someone as good as Terence, but I firmly believe I will be the first man to beat him and take his place in the pound-for-pound rankings.
“So, it is Brook who had better make sure he doesn’t lose in the meantime.”
At 32, Khan admitted: “I’m coming into the last chapter of my career.”
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🇬🇧 Press Conference in London #buckinghampalace #londoneye #England #CrawfordVKhan
A post shared by Amir Khan(@amirkingkhan) on Jan 16, 2019 at 4:07am PST
As such, he can envisage Crawford and either Brook or the legendary Manny Pacquiao being his opponents “for my last two fights”.
That suggests that if he does shock Crawford, a world title unification showdown with Pacquiao would take precedence over boxing Brook, meaning that fight may never happen.
Furthermore, the fight against Crawford is the last in his three-fight deal with Hearn, who also promotes Brook.
Goodbye everyone. Boarded flight to USA for 3+ months. Training camp begins soon. I will come back to England as the new WBO World Champion. pic.twitter.com/rbXOtoh8py
— Amir Khan (@amirkingkhan) January 16, 2019