Khan, sumusunod sa yapak ni Pacquiao

MANILA, Philippines - Maliban kay Filipino boxing superstar Manny Pacquiao, isa pang light sensation ang sinabi ni American trainer Freddie Roach na magiging isa ring world boxing champion.

“He is more mature now,” ani Roach kay Briton Amir Khan matapos nitong talunin si Mexican boxing legend Marco Antonio Barrera via fifth-round technical decision kahapon sa MEN Arena sa Manchester, England. “He follows the game plan beautifully. He’ll be my next world champion. No doubt.”

Ang panalo ang nag-angat sa win-loss-draw ring record ng 22-anyos na si Khan sa 20-1-0 kasama ang 15 KOs, habang may 65-7-0 (43 KOs) slate naman ang 35-anyos na si Barrera.

Ang banggaan ng ulo sa first round ang nagresulta sa pagputok sa itaas na bahagi ng kaliwang mata ni Barrera hanggang bumuka ito sa fifth round kung saan itinigil na ni referee Dave Parris ang laban sa 2:36.

“Today I proved everyone wrong,” wika ni Khan, nakakolekta ng mga iskor na 50-44, 50-45 at 50-45 kontra kay Barrera. “I got beat by Breidis Prescott. It was a blessing in disguise. I went to Wild Card and trained under Freddie Roach. And you can see the difference in me. The training I did in LA. Hit and move. Be sharp, be careful, and be patient. It paid off tonight. It was a tough fight for me. I went in and made it easy work.”

Ayon kay Barrera, isang headbutt ang nangyari sa kanila ni Khan, ang 2004 Olympic Games silver medalist, sa first round kung saan siya ang nadehado. 

“It was a head butt in the first round,” wika ni Barrera. “I felt they should have stopped the fight in that round. The cut was as big now as it was then. The blood was in my eyes and I couldn’t see at all. I couldn’t feel his punches at all. He has fast hands but he doesn’t hit very hard. What happened tonight was just because of the cut..” 

Wala pang inihahayag si Barrera, dalawang beses na tinalo ng 30-anyos na si Pacquiao noong 2004 at 2006, kung tuluyan nang magreretiro kagaya ng ginawa ng kababayan niyang si Eric Morales.

 Si Barrera, tinaguriang “Baby-Faced Assasin” ay nagkampeon sa super bantamweight, featherweight at super featherweight bago umakyat sa lightweight division. (RC)