Kelly Swanson
Thanks, everybody, for joining us today. Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving. We are really grateful that we’re on the call today with the one and only Unified Super Lightweight World Champion Amir ‘King’ Khan.
Just a side note before we get to the call, I’ve learned recently that last week Amir was selected as Fighter of the Year by the British Boxing Board of Control. It’s the first time he’s won that honor. So congratulations to him on that and also today we have learned that the BBC has nominated him for Sports Celebrity of the Year. If everybody knows about that program, that’s a very big program that you compete in over in the U.K. with many different athletes from all different sports.
So, as I mentioned, Amir Khan is on the phone with us. He’s joined by his trainer, Freddie Roach. We also have Asif Vali from Khan Promotions. And now, to make the formal introductions and talk a little bit more about Capital Showdown on Saturday, December 10th, Khan vs. Peterson, is Oscar De La Hoya, President of Golden Boy Promotions. Oscar?
Oscar De La Hoya
Thank you very much, Kelly. We are delighted to be on this call with the one and only Amir ‘King’ Khan. Obviously he’s the best 140-pound fighter in the planet. He’s a Unified Champion. We are thrilled to be presenting Capital Showdown from Washington, D.C. So, we’re really, really excited about going down to our capital.
This fight is presented by Golden Boy Promotions and Khan Promotions December 10th, sponsored by Cerveza Tecate, Dewalt Tools and AT&T. It will be televised live in the United States of America on HBO’s World Championship Boxing starting at 9:45 p.m. Eastern and 6:45 p.m. Pacific time and on Sky Sports in the United Kingdom. So we are thrilled that Amir ‘King’ Khan will be shown all over the U.K. on Sky Sports.
At this time, I would like to take an opportunity to also mention the co-main event which will be an exciting fight. It’s a showdown against Timur Ibragimov, who is a very dangerous, hard, strong puncher in the heavyweight division. He’ll be up against the up-and-coming American hope, Seth Mitchell.
At this time, let me take the opportunity to introduce to you the man behind Amir Khan; the man who really has taken him to a whole new level in terms of his training regimen, and his experience up in that ring. He’s teaching him all sorts of new combinations and everything there is to know about the sweet science. That is Freddie Roach.
Freddie Roach
Thanks, Oscar. I appreciate it. Amir’s had a great training camp and been looking forward to this fight with Peterson. We know that Peterson is a very, very strong opponent and know Amir is 100 percent ready, and I can’t wait to get this going.
O. De La Hoya
All right. Thank you, Freddie Roach, and we’ll be having questions afterwards for Freddie Roach as well. Let me explain to you a bit about this great main event.
Amir ‘King’ Khan will be facing Lamont Peterson. Lamont Peterson has a record of 29 and 1 with 15 knockouts out of Washington, D.C. Amir Khan will be going into his back yard, which obviously is going to give Lamont Peterson a lot of energy and excitement so he can show off in front of his President, Barack Obama. He had an impressive amateur career including National Golden Glove Championships. He has won the NABO/NABF titles. He’s coming off a draw against Victor Ortiz. He’s faced Victor Manuel Cayo in the IBF elimination bout and now he’s coming back to face the best-the best at 140 lbs. So Lamont Peterson is a very stiff, strong, difficult test for our next fighter that I’ll be presenting to you now.
A little bit about Amir Khan. He’s the current Unified Super Lightweight World Champion and obviously holds the WBA Super World Championship and IBF Championship. At just 24 years old, he’s accomplished so much, starting with that silver medal in the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, when he was just only 17 years old.
We feel very proud of Amir Khan for all the charity work he’s done in the U.K. and in Pakistan. He’s defeated the legends like Marco Antonio Barrera in 2009. He’s been up against Andreas Kotelnik. He’s gone up against the unbeaten Dmitriy Salita, who he demolished in one round. He’s gone up against Paulie Malignaggi. He’s had a unanimous decision victory over the knockout artist, Marcos Maidana, where he showed and proved to everyone that Amir Khan is here to stay and here to stay for a very long time.
He was the Boxing Writer’s Association of America’s 2010 Fighter of the Year. In April he returned to his home and defeated the very hungry and tough challenger from Ireland, Paul McCloskey. He’s defeated the likes of Zab Judah, and now he’s going back up once again in Lamont Peterson’s hometown to face a very, very dangerous fighter. So now, at this opportunity, I would like to introduce to you with a record of 26 and 1, 18 knockouts of Bolton, England, Amir ‘King’ Khan.
Amir Khan
Thank you, Oscar. Hi, everyone. Training camp has gone really well. We’ve been here in L.A. for the last eight weeks. It’s the final week here until we fly out to Washington and start training there for maybe a week and get used to the time difference and get over the jet lag. Then we prepare for the weigh-in on Friday.
But, yes, training has gone brilliantly. I’m happy with the way things have gone. Sparring has gone good. We’ve had some tough, tough sparring partners who’ve been very strong and not taken a step back. They’ve probably been tougher than fighting Lamont on Saturday, hopefully, because the sparring partners have been a big help in this camp. Also pad work with Freddie and also strength work with Alex Ariza, it went really well. I’m in probably one of the best conditions I’ve ever been in for a fight. And I think this camp has been one of the best camps working alongside the likes of Manny Pacquiao, Cesar Chavez, Jr and Linares.
We’ve had a great camp and Freddie and Alex have made a lot of time for each of the fighters including myself. We’re looking forward to the fight. We know Lamont Peterson’s strong. He’s awkward. He brings a lot to the table but we know exactly how to deal with that. We’ve got a game plan that we’re going to work on and hopefully, we’ll take Lamont Peterson out of his game plan and beat him. That’s our job on Saturday, to beat him and to move onto bigger and better things. But first of all, Lamont knows we can take care of him and we’ll see where we are from there. Thanks.
Q
You’ve been to D.C. as a guest of Hillary Clinton and I know you’re fighting in Lamont’s hometown. Do you feel as much that you can win his fans kind of like you did in New York with Paulie Malignaggi’s fans?
A. Khan
Yes, I think we can. I’ve got a style that people love, and when they see me in real life, they see the speed, they see the power, they see the explosive style. I’m sure they will take a liking in my style and hopefully they can start following me. I was there not long ago in Washington, D.C., and you see that they are big boxing fans over there and they’ve not had a big boxing fight there for such a long time. So we just want to bring boxing back to the capital and put on a good performance for them.
Q
Do you have a sense of the Pakistani background of the people around? Have you gotten any support from the D.C. area?
A. Khan
Yes, when I went there the first time it was amazing enough to see so many people who knew who I was. I mean, everywhere I would go they knew exactly who I was and what I did, and they’d been following my boxing career and it was just nice to see that. When we came back and we spoke to Richard and Oscar and we said maybe it’s a good idea to fight in Washington, D.C., and we all agreed with it and that’s where the fight is.
Yes, I really think going into this fight, even though the fight is in Lamont Peterson’s backyard, I really think we will have more support than him. There are a lot of fans coming from New York and close states near Washington. I really think that we’ll have a bigger fan base.
Q
Wow, that’s interesting. He says that he watched the Pacquiao fight with Marquez, and Marquez he considers to be his favorite fighter. He believes that Freddie Roach fighters are very authentic minded and that he has a little bit of Marquez’s style and can similarly mute and blunt your offense and can do very similar things. Have you heard any of that? Or what do you think of him saying that?
A. Khan
I’ve not heard nothing about that, but we also offered the fight to Marquez a long time ago and he refused that fight. I think styles makes fights, and I think with my style you can put out Marquez and put Amir, I think we all know what the decision will be. But with Lamont, we’ll see. I’ve done up my homework, and we’re going to stick to the game plan and I’m going to stick to instructions from my corner. But he can go ahead and think what he wants in the fight because it will be a different story when he’s in there alone.
Q
Freddie, Amir made a reference to the sparring partners that he has and how they’ve emulated Lamont’s style. Can you address that as well?
F. Roach
Yes, we’ve got some really good sparring partners, Robert Garcia, Wale Omotoso. We have one of our boys from Russia who has trained amateur fighters and is a very, very good boxer. We’re just well prepared for whatever he brings. I’ve had boxers and bangers both. I mean we’re here. If he wants to bang with us, we’re ready for that. If he wants to try to box with us, we’re ready for that. We’re studying tapes of him, and we see where he likes to be and so forth. We’re not going to put ourselves in those positions. Amir is just going to be too fast for him in my book.
Q
I’m wondering about you coming to Washington. I know you said you enjoyed your visit and we talked about it. But there are not a lot of fighters, especially top guys, where they don’t have to go to their opponent’s hometown. You’re not required to go to Washington, D.C. You could have fought in many places, I’m sure. I know that Richard talked about that prior to this fight actually being set up to be in Washington. What do you think it says about Amir Khan that here’s a guy that’s willing not only to fight top contenders as you have done for the last several years, including Peterson, but that you’re willing to do it in his hometown the way you did when you fought Paulie in your first American fight in New York City?
A. Khan
It’s just the way I am. I’m not afraid to fight away from home. We could have chosen to fight in England, Manchester, or even fight in Los Angeles or Vegas again away from Lamont’s hometown and his home state. But we thought, “We’ll take the fight to him and we’ll face someone who’s in the top five in the world, he’s in the top ten and he’s ranked number one in the IBF. So we’ll fight him and once we beat him then there are no excuses.”
Also it’s going to build my fan base. I’ve always wanted to fight in the capital and I’ve always wanted to fight in different states to build my status in way of a professional. I want people to know who Amir Khan is and they want to see me-it’s different watching on T.V. than watching live performances. And I want to give everyone the chance to see me fight live, and this is the best way of doing it, is to travel and fight away from where you feel comfortable fighting.
I mean, that’s one thing about me. All my life I’ve been fighting away from home. I train away from home and I’ve kind of got used to it. I win fans over and that’s what I love doing. I mean the best fight in the world I’ve done-you look at Manny Pacquaio, he lives in the Philippines but he chooses to come to America and train and also fight away from and fight in different states. I want to do the same thing that he is doing.
Q
There are a lot of fans out there that they don’t want to give Amir Khan credit for the things that he has done. Here you are for the second fight in the last couple years going into the back yard of the hometown of your opponent. You have consistently fought the best guys. A lot of people said you were scared to fight Maidana but you fought him; that you didn’t want to fight this guy. That you wouldn’t want to fight Timothy Bradley then you go ahead and you offer him half the money in something that was shocking to most people. Do you think you get the credit for being willing to fight anybody anytime? Or that there are people that just don’t see what you’ve been doing the last couple years?
A. Khan
There are people who probably don’t see what I’m doing. I’m doing basically the way it should be done. The best fighters should face the best fighters in the world and I’m doing that. I wanted to fight Bradley; he turned it down. We took on Maidana; we beat him. We took on Zab Judah, who also was another threat in that division, and we took him out. That’s the reason they’ve put me to number one in the world because they call me the best fighter in that division because I’m one fighter who loves taking the risks and fighting the best out there.
Q
Freddie, can you talk just a little bit about what Amir was saying about the willingness to go on the road. You’ve trained lots of guys; some who have gone on the road, others who haven’t. He mentioned Manny, for example.
When you train a young fighter like Amir, I know you see his ability as talent; you’re in the corner with him. But what does it say to you about the character of a guy that’s willing to not only travel to fight in the other guy’s hometown, but not act like a prima donna when he’s willing to come to the Philippines and follow Manny, understanding Manny’s position in boxing? Go with you to Dallas to finish up a training camp, that sort of thing, what does that say about him? That and the combination of his willingness to not only go to the other guy’s hometown, but also to train where necessary so you can work with him?
F. Roach
Yes, I take my hat off to Amir. He’s very disciplined and wherever I am, he wants to be. So I do have to travel at times to the Philippines and so forth, and he’s always right there with me. The thing is, the ring is the same size in L.A. that it is in Washington, and we get a new crowd there and so forth. We’re going to impress that new crowd. I think it’s the sign of a true champion.
Q
One more quick question for Amir. Are you at all concerned about getting a decision if it goes that long in his hometown?
A. Khan
We’ve trained for that long distance. If we see him hurt, we’re going to go for the finish. If it does go the distance, I’m sure we’re going to win the fight so convincingly that we’re going to be way ahead. There’s only going to be one winner in the fight, which is going to be me.
Q
I know a lot of athletes prefer to be on the road because there’s less distraction and they don’t have family and friends they have to worry about tickets to get. Do you think you may have an advantage in that respect that Lamont has all these people in D.C. kind of rooting for him. He has to deal with all those other distractions while you can worry just about the fight itself?
A. Khan
Yes, you know sometimes there are a lot of distractions when you fight in your hometown because you’ve got, like you said, people want tickets. But you know, I’ve got a great team around me wherever and whenever I fight in Bolton or Manchester; I have my team to look after that, and I still focus on my job. I’m sure Lamont has got a team around him as well who is going to be focusing on all the distractions and everything and keep all them away from him because they know how big of a fight this is for him. He knows himself. I’m sure he’s going to be a lot stronger. If I was him, I’d be more focused on what I need to do on Friday.
Q
And Freddie, can you talk just a little bit about Amir and kind of his mental approach to fighting and in this fight particular where his focus, that type of thing?
F. Roach
Well, you know Amir, he’s travelled and we’ve been everywhere in training camps and fights and so forth. So Amir adapts well to wherever it is. We’re in for Lamont Peterson; D.C. is going to be a great place. I’ve fought in D.C. myself once before and had a good fight with Darryl Tyson, and I look forward to visiting D.C. again and being victorious.
Q
I was just wondering, everybody’s talking about how it’s a possible revenge for Lamont Peterson but in that aspect with so many South Asian/Americans, what is your take on that? Is that more like a favorite for you on your side in terms of home field advantage?
A. Khan
We’re going to have so much support come to the fight and wherever we fight, I’ve been very lucky. We’ve done well selling tickets and we’ve had a good crowd, and so that part really doesn’t affect me. When I’m in the ring, I’m focused on my job, and my job is to win the fight and stick to the game plan. Anything outside, that doesn’t really affect me. I just focus on my job really. That could be more of his fans or more of my fans. I always put a good performance on, and no matter what, they’ll always walk out happy.
Q
If it’s a success in terms of a fight in D.C., would you consider coming back here?
A. Khan
Sure, definitely. I like to keep the fans happy and I’m sure once we fight there, the fans will want us back there again. There’s not been a big, big fight in D.C. for such a long time, so it’ll be good to bring boxing back to D.C.
Q
Hi, Amir. Thanks for doing this teleconference. I just want to ask you a little bit about your run in with Timothy Bradley last May because I saw the video. Can you kind of expand on what happened when you ran into him over there?
A. Khan
I saw him after his win and he was walking towards me. I mean, he wouldn’t look at me. He knew I was there and I said something to him, something like you ought to grow some balls and get in a fight against me and he just didn’t look at me again. I mean, he must have heard me because his team behind him; I think it was his father or his trainer was there and they didn’t like that. At the end of the day, he sat quiet and he just went ahead out there, and I didn’t want to make myself look stupid because I really think I’m a bigger draw in the division. But I just wanted to make him realize and make him know that I’m not scared, and I’m the one who wants to fight. And he needs to man up and take the fight.
For now, we’ve got Lamont Peterson to focus on. So if the fight happens, it happens. I don’t care because at the end of the day, I offered to fight with Bradley, and the world knows that and he refused it. So, I’m just going to go on and move on.
Q
Amir, in the past, you said that this could be your last fight of the year and might be your last at 140. Have you had a chance to think about that some more and would a fight against Bradley keep you in the weight class for one more fight?
A. Khan
Yes, maybe. It just depends how things go after this fight. I was thinking of moving up to 147, but if that one fight is still there for me then it’s worth me staying at this division. But, if not, then I’ll move up to 147. It’s not because I have trouble making the weight. I can still make 140 easy, it’s just the challenges are not there. I just need new motivation and I want to face new fighters and be amongst different names. That’s what’s going to drive me. We’ll just see what happens after this fight. Bradley might man up and he might take the fight. But if not, then we’ll be moving up to 147.
Q
And then if I could follow up to that, if you fought him, where would that fight be? Would you be willing to fight him in California? Or would it have to be somewhere neutral if you took on Bradley?
A. Khan
I think it would be better somewhere neutral, because at the end of the day he can’t sell tickets in his own back yard really, so it wouldn’t be worth fighting him in his own state or wherever he’s from. So wherever Golden Boy would put the fight, I’m happy to fight there.
Q
I wanted to ask you, is there any part of Lamont’s game that concerns you at all coming into this fight that you have been working on specifically?
A. Khan
We are aware of everything he does. We know exactly how he likes to fight and stuff. He can start worrying about; I think he said something like Amir can’t take a shot. He’s been down so many times off small punches; guys who don’t really punch hard. I think with my power and speed, I don’t think he can cope with that.
But we’re not worrying about him. We know exactly what to do. We’ve been training very hard for this fight and I always feel like a challenger. My job is to go into the fight and just win this fight and that’s what I’ve been doing. I don’t care what he brings to the table; we’ll have answers for everything.
Q
Do you feel that he has enough power to hurt you?
A. Khan
I think if he can attack an opponent with the right shot, right on the button, in the right place, then you’re going to put them down. That’s boxing for you. But we’re a lot smarter on my defenses; a lot better than it was before and to those he can bring what he wants to the table. We’ll be ready for everything he has.
Q
Is there any part of your game that you’ve felt you needed to work on during this camp?
A. Khan
We always improve on my style every fight. Every fight is different because you fight different opponents. The last two opponents were against southpaws. This fight is against an orthodox opponent, so we have changed a little bit with the foot work, also the defense.
We’ve been working on new things, new combinations and stuff that are going to work for me for this fight. And I think a lot of speed; speed will get me through this fight. I can either make this fight tough or I can make it easy. We’re just going to stick to the game plan and make it easy.
Q
There have been some stories out there recently that said that-and I’m not sure where they got this from-but said that maybe your relationship with Manny has kind of gotten a little bit rocky recently and that you might end up fighting him after all. I wonder if you and Freddie could both set the record straight on that?
A. Khan
That fight will never happen. I’ve always said to Freddie and Manny, Manny knows himself; we won’t fight each other. We have too much respect for each other. I remember when I moved to the Wild Card Gym, and Manny was a big help bringing me back and also helping me out in stuff and training. We also trained together and this camp we didn’t spar together or anything because I have different opponent. Also I trained a little bit later than Manny.
But everything was cool. I think these are rumors people make up. Me and Manny are cool. I was with him the day before he fought against Marquez in his room, having a chat with him, chilling out with him. I think it was just rumors; people like to spread rumors and stuff. We just laugh about it really.
Q
Okay, well, that’s good to hear. Freddie, any thoughts on that at all?
F. Roach
You just heard it. I mean, they’re friends and that’s the way it is. They have a lot of respect for me and each other, and I don’t see it happening. There are a lot of other fights out there and we’ll look forward to them.
Q
I have two questions. One is for Amir, the other is for Freddie. Amir, there’s no doubt that you’ve done great things since losing to Breidis Prescott. However, do you still feel that your career will be complete without eradicating what had happened to Prescott?
A. Khan
He’s had a lot of defeats since we fought each other. I think he’s gone downhill. But if it comes to a stage where we need opponents, I know he’ll always be there, and I will always be there for the fans. For the moment, I’ve got the names I want to take on first. I’ve got a different path I want to follow, and I want to go toward that first. But that fight, to answer that, we don’t need a bout. Maybe if we do need it one day, it’s going to be there for us.
Q
Freddie, Amir has mentioned that this could very well be his last fight at 140 and then he’ll move up to 147. There’s another guy that’s kind of like lurking in the background, I guess you could say, that’s contemplating moving up from lightweight to welterweight and I’m talking about Robert Guerrero. What do you think of a bout between Amir and Robert Guerrero at 140, and is that a concept that you would welcome?
F. Roach
Guerrero is a good friend of mine. He’s a good kid. He’s a good fighter. If that fight made sense and it was the best offer out there, it would definitely be a great fight. Robert is a great fighter and a great champion. If he wanted to fight Amir at 140, they could keep it around the weight, but if he’s more interested in fighting at 147, we’ll go there.
Q
Amir, would that fight interest you to stay at 140?
A. Khan
Well, yes, like Freddie just mentioned, I’ve never shied away from any fight and if that fight comes off and if it’s worth staying in the 140-pound division and makes sense, then definitely, I’ll take the fight.
Q
Hi, Freddie. The question I wanted to ask is Amir, you’ve been a little more active this year. This is actually going to be your third fight this year and you had a fight last December. Lamont Peterson has been less active. He’s only had one fight this year, the fight with Cayo. Do you think that’s going to give you any advantage or do you think that’s going to give him a chance since his loss to Bradley in the draw with Ortiz to sort of recharge, especially in his hometown?
A. Khan
First of all, when you fight in your hometown it’s going to give you a bolt anyway. It’s going to make you go out there try harder. Secondly, I think it’s good for me to stay busy; I mean this is my third fight this year. I’ve been in the gym a lot. I’ve been fighting. I’ve been active, so that’s going to help me. I’m also younger, so I can kind of cope with fighting three times a year.
But Lamont, I think, one fight a year is a little bit less. But it’s one of them things. Last year, I only fought twice a year. So it will be Lamont’s second fight this year. At the end of the day, we know he’s going to be prepared for it because he knows I’m up to the fight for him. He’s not going to take any chances. He’s going to go into this fight and that’s what’s motivating me because I know I’m fighting him in his hometown is only going to make him fight harder and train harder.
It’s motivating me and making me train harder in the gym because I know that he’s going to want to win this fight in front of his home crowd. I think this is the time where we’ve got a big, big super fight in front of us, so I can’t afford to lose and get beat and to keep on winning-not only winning, but looking good in the fight as well and doing things right. For me this is a big fight. It’s going to take me from being a good fighter to being a superstar. So hopefully, Lamont Peterson will make me one of the best fighters in the world.
Q
With all the talk, as you said, of super fights coming up and of you possibly moving up to welterweight, one guy who apparently is looking for an opponent on May 5th is Floyd Mayweather. Would you be interested in fighting him, and if you did and he insisted on the Olympic style drug testing, would that be okay with you?
A. Khan
One thing about me, I get drug tested with the British Board testers randomly. They can come to my house anytime. They can pop into the gym anytime. When they last come, they were at the gym twice unexpectedly. So, we have to give them a test.
If that fight did come off, I’m happy to give them a test because I’m a clean fighter. That’s one thing about me because I went to Olympic Games; I’ve kind of experienced it myself. But I’m sure if that fight happened, we need a little bit more time to think about it instead of rushing into something so big.
First of all, we’ve got Lamont Peterson to look ahead of and get Lamont Peterson out of the way, then we know exactly where I am and then I can sit down with my team and Freddie and every one and see where we go from there. But one thing about me I think the world of boxing knows is I never shy away from any fight. I’ve taken on whoever they put in front of me and I’ve never refused a fight. That’s one thing about me. They put Floyd Mayweather in front of me; I’ll be more than ready for Floyd Mayweather. But first of all, we’ve got Lamont Peterson to take care of.
Q
Yes, first of all, Amir, I want to applaud you for calling out anyone and everyone as of late. There are a lot of high profile fighters that just say, I’ll see what my promoter says, and leave it at that. With that said, where does this latest confidence come from? Or what motivates you in terms of wanting to fight one top fighter after another?
A. Khan
That’s just the way I am. I’ve been doing it since I was an amateur and moving through the pro ranks. Winning a world title at a young age gave me that motivation and that confidence to go in there and fight anyone. With the skills and the way I train and my team around me, I train hard and keep training the way I do. And I don’t think there’s anyone out there who can beat me.
We made mistakes in the early days, and we don’t make them again. Now I don’t think anything can go wrong. But it’s just the way I am as a person. I never shy away from a fight. Whoever they put in front of me, I’ll face. I will fight, and I will beat.
I think it’s just being young is all and me being away from home. One thing about me is I moved from England at a young age and come to Freddie’s gym and the Wild Card in Los Angeles to train there and not many young fighters will do that, especially at that age. I chose to do that and right away it gave me confidence to fight anyone.
If I can train away from home and live away from home for ten weeks at a time and I know I’m trained for the fight, I can face anyone. I also train really hard when I train for a fight. I mean, I push myself in that uncomfortable zone. Not many fighters probably could do that; I think the other fighter who probably could keep up with and I can keep with him is Manny Pacquiao. I don’t think there are other fighters who can keep up with the work and the pace and the type of workout that we put in training. I don’t think not many fighters can cope with that. I know when I go to a training camp, I’m going to be training a lot harder than my opponent. That’s what motivates me as well, that’s what pushes me to these big fights because I know I’ve been training harder than the guy I’m facing.
Q
Okay, I want to partially fault you here, Amir, in reference to Lamont Peterson and then follow up on that. You said we’d been working on fighting on the inside. We know he’s a tough guy inside. In my opinion, Lamont’s tendency in the heat of the moment is to abandon his jab, give up whatever length advantage he has, and wade into his opponents where many times he is a better inside fighter.
So in reference to working on in fighting, are you resigned to the fact that Peterson will get inside? And/or don’t you feel that your best chances at a victory are to box from the outside and use the ring as you have in the past, especially considering Lamont likes to stand in front of his opponents? What’s your perspective? Freddie, you can chime in on that as well.
F. Roach
Do you want us to give you our whole game plan or just half of it?
Q
What is the purpose of working on the inside? Don’t you feel your best chances are from boxing outside and doing what you’ve been doing?
F. Roach
Yes, but what if he gets inside and we’re not prepared for it? You don’t practice it? I mean, we’re ready for whatever he brings.
Q
Okay, well, I guess that sums that up. To finish up, I’ve got a two-part question for either of you. Amir’s style and strategy for the most part is aside from seeking out, throwing out certain opponents, has been the streak and move and it has served you well up to this point in wanting to expand your game to fight in close because it doesn’t seem like Amir has been in fighting. Is this something you’re working on perhaps in reference to finally meeting up with Tim Bradley? That’s the first part. How confident are you that maybe a unification scuffle with Tim will come off in 2012 if indeed you get past Lamont?
F. Roach
We’re thinking about Peterson right now, in my opinion, and who cares about Bradley at this point?
Q
Hi, Amir. Hi, Freddie. Yes, I have two questions; one for Khan and one for Freddie. Khan, what is the greatest lesson Freddie Roach taught you after you lost to Breidis Prescott?
A. Khan
I think the best lesson I was taught was to think about everything instead of going in there with my heart and fighting and using my speed and power; it’s always better to use your brains and stick to your game plan. I used to go into fights with no game plan. Now we go into a fight with a game plan and with instructions which makes it a little easier or makes it a lot easier knowing wherever you throw it, it makes sense why you throw it.
Q
Okay, this is for Freddie. Freddie, we know that Manny is a different species but what do you see something very special about Khan that differs to Manny?
F. Roach
I think the fighters have a lot of similarities. They give good punches together. They work together well. They both have a lot of speed. They both have a lot of power. They both have great work ethic. They’re definitely good role models for everybody in the world. They’re great at what they do because they work hard at it.
K. Swanson
I think that was our last question, so any final comments? If not, we will let you go. Thank you so much for hanging in there with us and keeping it quiet Freddie. Yes, can’t wait to have you here, Amir.
A. Khan
Thank you very much.
F. Roach
Bye, bye.
