• Light-welterweight

Khan: Hunter promised his 100% attention

ESPN staff
October 9, 2012
Amir Khan is back on December 15 against Carlos Molina © PA Photos
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Trainer Virgil Hunter has told Amir Khan that he will be 100% committed to the cause, despite his work with super-middleweight king Andre Ward.

Khan ditched Freddie Roach in order to link up with Hunter, citing the former's relationship with Manny Pacquiao as damaging to his own chances of success.

There were fears history would repeat itself as Hunter also looks after Ward, one of the sport's pound-for-pound masters - but Khan insists that will not be the case.

"I spoke to Virgil and the first thing I said to him was that you have Andre Ward, and I hope you are not going to be busy like Freddie was with Manny Pacquiao and I do get 100% of your time," he said.

"He made it clear he is going to be with me 100% and whenever I need him he is going to be there - he wants a fighter/trainer relationship where we speak together and get on well together."

Khan returns to action on December 15 against Carlos Molina in Las Vegas, following defeats in each of his last two fights, against Lamont Peterson and Danny Garcia - reverses which provoked the split from Roach.

"I'm still not 100%," Khan said. "I've still got room for improvement and it is maybe going back to the basics and looking at where I make mistakes and improving them. I'm an offensive fighter and I need my trainer to teach me the defensive part of training whilst at the same time remaining as offensively good.

"So that is what we are going to be working on, we know exactly what we have to do. We have never really had a defence if you think about it."

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