Amir Khan is one of the rising stars of the boxing world and proved it again last Saturday night against savvy veteran Zab Judah.

I first heard of the Pakistani Englishmen boxer Amir Khan when he was guest on the Adam Carolla Show podcast in February.  Soon after that, HBO started continually replaying what was possibly the best boxing match of 2010.  It was a fight between Khan and hard throwing Argentine, Marcos Maidana.  In that fight Khan wasn’t just content to land some punches and run away, but stood toe to toe with Maidana to prove his toughness.  Khan might have momentarily been knocked out on his feet, but he fought through it somehow and won a unanimous decision.

In the fifth round of Saturday night’s fight, Khan caught Judah with an uppercut that landed on the beltline and maybe have grazed below the belt—sending Judah down to the canvas.  The referee didn’t count it as a low blow, but as a knockdown.  He was either confused or bewildered and let the referee count to ten, thus ending the fight.  Judah tried to play it off, as though he thought it was an illegal punch below the belt and looked for a standing eight count or a possible five minute reprieve.  Regardless, by this point, the fight was well in hand for Khan.

Both men made the 140 pound weight limit, but it was obvious by the fight time that Khan was the bigger, stronger of the two.  He, also, made his quickness evident throughout the fight.

This might be the end for Zab Judah’s career, which is unfortunate.  The 33 year old fighter was in supreme condition.  He hired Victor Conte, as nutrition consultant, and former lightweight star, Pernell “Sweet Pea” Whitaker, as his trainer.  Conte was owner/operator of BALCO, a company that supplied human growth hormone to many athletes, most notably and allegedly, to all-time home run king Barry Bonds.  He did a prison sentence and now claims to be straight as a nutrition and supplements consultant.

None of that helped Judah because he had no answer for the flurry of punches coming his way.  Compubox reported he only landed 10 power punches in the five rounds the fight lasted.

For the 24 year old Khan, now 27-1, he has proven that he has a solid enough chin and is skilled to fight anyone.  Matter of fact, top welterweight Timothy Bradley turned down the fight that Judah took.  Some people speculate that he turned it down because he is in line to fight Floyd Mayweather, Jr., after Mayweather’s fight with Victor Ortiz.  Losing to Khan might nix that big payday with Mayweather.

So Khan must beat a few other light-welterweight contenders and, then, he may also have a super fight with Floyd Mayweather, Jr. on the horizon.  Khan is trained by Freddie Roach, who is also Manny Pacquiao’s trainer, so a Khan/Pacquiao fight looks out of the question.

Maybe if Khan makes his way up to challenge Mayweather, Jr. in the near future and loses, then it will, finally, convince Mayweather, Jr. and Pacquiao to fight each other.  More like convince Mayweather to fight Pacquiao.  Not sure if there will be a boxing version of Six Degrees of Amir Khan, but Khan is going to be a big name in the sport for years to come as Mayweather and Pacquiao reach the end of their primes.

Author: Aaron Lisker