Boxing: Why Amir Khan is Confident of Dethroning Canelo Alvarez in May 7 Fight

Former world champion Amir Khan will be a heavy underdog in his upcoming showdown with reigning World Boxing Council middleweight titlist Canelo Alvarez on May 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

While most fans and boxing analysts are already counting Khan out, the British boxing superstar is convinced that he has what it takes to beat Canelo, which is the main reason why he accepted the fight offer.

Khan will be fighting above 155 pounds for the first time in his career, which makes Canelo the naturally bigger fighter. The Mexican boxing superstar has been very comfortable fighting at 155, but Khan thinks his speed will put Canelo in trouble in their Cinco de Mayo fight.

“People keep asking me why I want to fight this big fighter. I really believe I can win in this fight,” Khan said during a press conference in London on Monday via ESPN. “What will win this fight is speed, determination and skill. My dream has always been to fight the best and test myself and in Canelo I’m facing just that.”

Khan, who has 31 wins and three defeats in his 11-year professional career, also played down predictions suggesting that Canelo will have a walk in the park. The Bolton, England native knows he is the underdog but reiterated that he is used to being overlooked.

Khan recalled that nobody thought he will make noise during the 2004 Athens Olympics. The then-17-year-old Khan surprised the skeptics, as he went on to win the silver medal in Greece, losing to Cuban amateur boxing icon Mario Kindelan, who is a two-time Olympic and three-time world champion.

“When I was 17 and in the Olympics I was an underdog,” said Khan, who is coming off a unanimous decision win against former light welterweight world champion Chris Algieri. “No one gave me a chance of winning a medal. Everyone thought I was going to lose then. This is what this feels like now.”