How King Khan Rocked Vegas

MOST people who come back from Las Vegas tend not to remember what went down and how they lost a small fortune.

That wasn't the case for Amir Khan, whose high-risk punt to take on big-hitting Marcos Maidana paid off last Saturday (11) in a bruising 12-round encounter.

King Khan proved he had the heart, and the chin, to be a high roller at the Mandalay Bay Casino and Resort and come out of the fight in victory.

Khan put his WBA world light-welterweight title on the line in the gambling city and managed to come back with not only the belt, but got the respect he deserved as well as countless more admirers.

Khan began the fight with some easy pickings and looked to close the night early when he sent Maidana crashing to the canvas with two destructive body shots.

It looked easy going for Khan, who has definitely come a long way since his only pro defeat to Colombia’s Breidis Prescott in September 2008.

But he didn't have it all his own way and at one stage, it looked as if Maidana was on the verge of giving the 24-year-old a night to forget.

A booming right hand rocked Khan in a big way but rather than fade away, he managed to remain in the bout and finished strongly.

In the end, Khan managed to secure a full house as all three judges voted in his favour and it was the Bolton boxer who showed he was still the King.

Having defended his world title three times, Khan is ready to prove himself as the best in the business.

And he has set his stakes high once again by looking to take on one of the biggest and best hustlers in the boxing world: Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Even trainer Freddie Roach believes Khan is good enough to beat the unbeaten 41-fight veteran if Mayweather doesn’t take on Manny Pacquiao next year.

"I used to think I had one fighter who could beat Mayweather - but now I think I have two," Roach said.

"I am not a big fan of Mayweather - Amir and Manny have speed which he can't handle. If Mayweather won't fight Manny, maybe he'll fight Amir,” said Roach before Khan’s bout with Maidana.

"I am not saying I would want that one right now, but maybe in another two fights.”

At the moment, Khan is catching up on some well-deserved rest at home with friends and family before plotting the next phase of his boxing journey in 2011.

But fans who have followed Khan’s career since his amateur days and his exploits in the 2004 Olympics were never in doubt that he would become a big name in the game.

And his rise has almost been matched by the British Asian Sports Awards, which marks a decade of promoting and celebrating sporting success in the community.

Khan has been a frequent winner at the BASA, winning the Sports Personality of the Year award on three occasions. He also picked up the 2009 Champagne Moment of the Year award after beating Andreas Kotelnik to become world champion.

He is well on his quest to becoming a legend in boxing circles and could one day be mentioned in the same breath as Mohammad Ali, Rocky Marciano, Mike Tyson and Prince Naseem Hamed.

By Zohaib Rashid