British Boxer Amir Khan issued an official statement following undefeated boxing's pound-for-pound king, Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s official announcement, selecting Argentinean slugger Marcos "El Chino" Maidana, 35-3-0 (KO 31) as his opponent on May 3.
Khan, 28-3-0 (KO 19) posted his official statement on his website and I can feel his frustration and disappointment for not landing the Mayweather fight.
“I am, however, very disappointed with Floyd and his team for not providing any explanation as to why he delayed the announcement for so long and ultimately avoided the fight with me.
Khan pulled out a fight against Devon Alexander on December in anticipation for a showdown with Floyd. But Khan's opportunity to fight Floyd and get the biggest paycheck in his career was in jeopardy when Marcos Maidana defeated Mayweather's "little brother" Adrein Broner last year.
With Maidana's name included in the mix, Floyd ran a poll on his website to determine whether the fans wanted Khan or Maidana for him to fight next . Khan won the poll. But in another websites running the same poll -- Maidana won.
On Floyd's birthday, he announced that he's fighting Maidana.
With Floyd's unfavorable decision to Khan, he (Khan) is expected to announce his next fight in the next 10 days.
“I’m focused and ready for my next outing - we currently have a few options on the table at the moment and my team are working alongside Golden Boy Promotions to announce my next fight within the next 10 days.
Here's the full excerpt from Amir Khan official statement:
“Following the announcement by Floyd Mayweather that he will be facing Marcos Maidana on May 3rd I would like to clarify my situation for my fans and members of the media.
“Despite having signed my part of the agreement to fight Floyd in early December, I’ve been preparing myself for some time that the match up with him wasn’t going to happen, as I announced on Twitter a few days ago. Therefore, this announcement did not come as a surprise.
“I am, however, very disappointed with Floyd and his team for not providing any explanation as to why he delayed the announcement for so long and ultimately avoided the fight with me.
“Clarification, if he was not fighting me, would have allowed me to look over my options and pursue another path, rather than the ultimate delay to my career this has caused.
“It has been a very frustrating period as I’d been due to fight in December against Devon Alexander, however, I was strongly advised to not take this fight as I would be facing Floyd this May – and therefore signed my side of the contract on this belief.
“Floyd was keen to engage with the fans and so decided to let them choose who he should fight in his next bout. I clearly won his official poll, by a significant margin, but for unknown reasons he decided to ignore the fans vote and failed to keep his word. Disappointing many fight fans who took the time to vote.
“I genuinely wish Marcos and Floyd all the best for their fight – two great fighters. As a team we have now moved on and are looking at different options.
“I’ve been training very hard since my last fight. I’m a fighter who wants to face the very best out there and have never ducked any opponent.
“I’m focused and ready for my next outing - we currently have a few options on the table at the moment and my team are working alongside Golden Boy Promotions to announce my next fight within the next 10 days.
“I can’t wait to get back in the ring and am determined to put on a great show for my loyal fans who have waited a long time to see me back in action – and I’m very excited about what’s yet to come this year. Thank you for all your continued support.”
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