• Boxing

Khan forced to defend WBA title

espn staff
January 5, 2010
Kahn must defend title © Getty Images
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Promoter Frank Warren has confirmed on his website that Amir Khan must defend his WBA light-welterweight title against Marcos Maidana. The potential fight, which has been ordered by the WBA, would pit Khan against an Argentinian who has won 27 of his 28 fights - with 26 knockouts.

Maidana's only loss was against Andreas Koltenik, who Khan defeated in July 2009 on a landslide decision to capture the WBA title. In the process, he became the third youngest Briton to win a world championship in the sport.

The Brit's first defence of that belt was against Dimitriy Salita in Newcastle last December, when he defeated the New Yorker in the first round with an authoritative performance.

The WBA sanctioned the Salita-Khan bout with a condition: the winner must fight Maidana within 90 days. However, despite the WBA's insistence, it is not certain that Khan's camp will accept that fight. Speculation persists that the Bolton-born pugilist would rather be involved in a more financially lucrative fight, potentially against Paulie Malignaggi or Ricky Hatton.

Hatton has stated that he is keen on the potential bout. Speaking to The Daily Mirror, he said: "A fight against Amir would be an enormous fight for everybody in the boxing business. "I know that Amir would take the fight and it is something that I have talked about - it's a long way off, but it could happen."

If Khan refuses to fight Maidana, the 23-year-old must vacate the belt.

© ESPN EMEA LTD
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