Now, I don't believe Freddy Roach is the messiah many in the media have made him out to be, but he is a great trainer who studied under the immortal Eddie Futch, and he's proven he can help a fighter resurrect his career (pun intended). It would probably be a mistake to leave the trainer who helped him through his first comeback after the loss to Breidis Prescott, so regrouping with Roach doesn't sound like such a bad idea.
Nevertheless-despite the glass jaw-Khan is a great talent, and it would be interesting to see what he would look like after working with some of the best trainers in boxing. I'm not trying to imply that any of these trainers are better than Roach. I am simply looking at the flaws in Khan's style, along with what he can do better, and I'm discussing how the elements these trainers bring to the table can help Khan improve as a fighter.
Floyd Mayweather Sr.
Floyd Mayweather Sr. is the architect for Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s style, and let's be honest; we still don't really know what kind of chin Floyd Jr. has. Given the situation, anything that can be added to Khan's defense is a plus. Along with being able to move really quickly with his feet, he'd be able to move his head, and most importantly, he'd think to tuck his chin down instead of moving straight in with it exposed. Tactics like these would reduce the possibility of a knockout loss significantly.
Roger Mayweather
In the post on Yahoo Sports "Roger Mayweather Offers Amir Khan Some Advice: Fan Reaction", Roger had some positive words for Khan, offering advice to help him come back from a knockout. This made me think about Roger in the position of Khan's trainer.
Roger would help Kahn in much the same way his brother would, but the difference is that Roger is better than Floyd Sr. with offense. This means that on top of having more defensive tools, Khan would probably have less trouble keeping opponents on the end of his shots.
Pedro Diaz
The interesting thing about Pedro Diaz is that he has helped bring back Miguel Cotto, a fighter who'd been brutally beaten over the duration of an entire fight twice (by Manny Pacquiao and Antonio Margarito). People talk about how Khan may never come back, but the knockouts he suffered were quick (especially when compared to what Cotto endured).
Diaz is very smart, and good at preparing fighters for the rigors of the fight. He's also very good in the corner, which helps in grueling fights where the support a fighter receives between rounds can make the difference between quitting and victory. Diaz used to be the coach for the renowned Cuban national team, so Khan would definitely be as technically proficient as possible for every fight. Khan would settle down with the footwork as well, given that he gets into that habit of moving excessively (especially later in fights).
Diaz is scientific when it comes to conditioning, so under Diaz, it's possible that Khan may be in such shape as to allow him to handle opposition power better. Ultimately Diaz biggest possible contribution would be in the corner. If Khan's ever in trouble, he'll have all the support in between round that a fighter can hope for.
James "Buddy" McGirt
As a professional James "Buddy" McGirt wasn't known for being insanely quick, strong, or being a big puncher. He was known as being a skillful fighter with strong fundamentals. As a trainer, he seamlessly brought those skills to other professionals, and quickly developed as a hot trainer. His work with Arturo Gatti was brilliant, as he brought Gatti from a low point in his career to a junior welterweight title he defended twice before losing it to Floyd Jr.
McGirt has as much knowledge of boxing as almost anyone, and Khan would enjoy the comfort of having all that at his fingertips. Many of his flaws and habits would be erased after a few fights. His jab would be more effective, he'd control distance better, he'd use more head movement, and his footwork would be more efficient. Add these improvements to his natural athleticism and it's a recipe for a successful comeback.
Robert Garcia
The thing that strikes me about Robert Garcia is his versatility. He was a very skilled fighter as a professional, and he seems to have imparted that nicely to his fighters. His most notable fighters as of late are Nonito Donaire, Brandon Rios, and Kelly Pavlik-for whom Garcia is now managing another comeback. These are three different types of fighters, but he seems to be managing well with all of them.
Most notable of his fighters is Donaire, who especially skllful and mobile. As Khan is most similar to Donaire in style, Donaire would be his benchmark. I can see Garcia helping to cultivate Kahn's attack to be more efficient, having him sit down on his punches, while throwing shorter shots. I can also see Khan using his lateral movement to get better angles to land punches, and not just to get away. If Khan can learn to move his head like Donaire, we might soon forget about what happened against Garcia.
Emanuel Steward
Up until now, I discussed ways in which the above trainers can help Khan, and make him a better fighter. While I have the utmost respect for Emanuel Steward, I don't think it would be advantageous for Khan to have Steward in his corner.
It's true that Steward engineered Wladimir Klitschko's comeback by teaching him how to keep people away from his chin. However, that's easy for Klitschko to do, given that he usually has a huge height advantage over opponents. While Khan is tall for the weight divisions he's competed in, that might not work so easily.
Steward is very good with the basics, and he puts a huge emphasis on power and aggression. Having said this, Steward biggest successes have been fighters who have tremendous power (Tommy Hearns, Lennox Lewis, and Klitschko). With fighters who have respectable power, he hasn't added a whole lot to their game (as was the case with Jermain Taylor, and more recently Miguel Cotto and Chad Dawson). While training with Steward may help Khan produce more knockouts, I could also see him abandoning defense. This may make him more fun to watch, but it we'd likely see him get knocked out more too.
Maybe some of you disagree with me, so I'd love to hear your opinions. Please leave comments, and I'll respond.
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