IBF and WBA Super Lightweight champion Amir Khan of England is so confident of retaining his crown against Lamont Peterson on Dec. 10th that he’s going to take the challenger on in his hometown of Washington D.C. In a card being billed as Capitol Showdown, Khan even invited President Obama out to the Convention Center to watch him fight. Peterson has earned the shot for the title by being the IBF’s mandatory challenger.
Khan’s confidence has grown immensely over the past few years since he’s won eight fights in a row with four of them coming by knockout. Peterson earned the shot and the number one ranking in the IBF by stopping Victor Cayo in the 12th round in a July title-fight eliminator.
Khan (26-1, 18 KOs) will be favored to win the bout, but Peterson’s (29-1-1, 15 KOs) going to present a tough challenge for the champion. He’s tough and possesses excellent boxing skills even though he may not be one of the world’s most exciting fighters. Khan has exceptional speed, but his chin is still questionable and probably always will be after being knocked out in just 54 seconds by Breidis Prescott back in 2008.
However, the 24-year-old has bounced back nicely with if wins over Marco Antonio Barrera (5th-round technical decision), Andriy Kotelnyk (12-round unanimous decision), Dmitriy Salita (1st-round TKO), Paulie Malignaggi (11th-round TKO), Marcos Maidana (12-round unanimous decision), Paul McCloskey (6th-round technical decision), and Zab Judah (5th-round KO) since then. He won the WBA title against Kotelnyk and added the IBF crown against Judah in his last fight on July 23rd.
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The 27-year-old Peterson’s biggest fights have been his win against Cayo on July 29th along with a 12-round majority draw against Victor Ortiz and a 12-round unanimous decision loss to WBO Super Welterweight Champion Timothy Bradley in December, 2009. These bouts should give him some good experience in high-pressure fights.
Khan possesses more power in his punches, but Peterson’s not the easiest guy to hit. His defence is commendable and Khan might get a little frustrated trying to find him. However, Khan’s also a good boxer and doesn’t rely on knocking his opponents out to win fights. He’s perfectly capable of out boxing them and settling for decisions.
Khan may have made a tactical mistake by fighting in Washington. He believes he has a lot of American fans, which is true, but the fight’s not taking place in New York or Las Vegas, it’s in Peterson’s hometown. This should give Peterson some added incentive and it’s likely the majority of the crowd will be cheering for him.
But other than that, Peterson doesn’t really have a clear advantage over Khan in any other area. He’s 5-foot-9 with a 74-inch reach while Khan’s 5-foot-10 with a 71-inch reach. This should be a competitive fight, but it might not be the most action-packed bout of the year. It’s possible that Peterson could win a close decision, but Khan’s speed should see him hang onto his title by a decision or late stoppage.
Betting Odds
Sportsbook 5dimes.com has the current odds of a Khan victory at -1200 with a Peterson win at +775. The odds of the fight going over 9.5 rounds are -155 and under 9.5 rounds at +125. Visit 5Dimes.com to bet on this fight.
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Written by Ian Palmer
Amir Khan betting • Lamont Peterson betting