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Amir Khan is Targeting to Have a Fight in Dubai with Manny Pacquiao

Eyebrows were raised when Amir Khan announced his latest fight details, with the Manchester-born fighter next set to face off with Indian challenger Neeraj Goyat in Saudi Arabia on July 12th. The Bolton-native of Pakistan descent will aim to bounce back from yet another substantial career setback last time out on his travels to Jeddah, in what is somewhat of a cash grab rather than a competitive match-up at the top level of the sport.

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This is the latest fight involving a UK representative to land at Jeddah, with the World Boxing Super Series super-middleweight final between Londoner George Groves and Liverpool’s Callum Smith having been held there at the King Abdullah Sports City in September last year. Amir Khan will hope to enjoy similar success to what Merseyside’s Smith did on that particular night at the same venue as he prepares to collide with a challenger that not much is known about, though Goyat is the present WBC Asian champion.

‘King’ Khan is currently regarded as the heavily odds-on 1/25 favorite in the boxing betting from bet365 to come out on top with his hand raised in this unexpected latest clash with little known opponent Goyat. However, he also has his eyes on the long-term, as he has expressed his desire to have a fight in the wealthy city of Dubai.

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His last ring appearance saw him stopped inside six rounds by arguably the best pound-for-pound fighter on the planet right now, Terence Crawford. There was controversy surrounding the stoppage, with the former world champion appearing to quit in the corner after a low blow was called.

It was another setback in his professional career which has cast doubts over his ability to remain relevant at the top of the sport, hence the decision to face lesser opposition on foreign soil next this summer and a reported $8.84 million set to be pocketed as well. But, while Khan is getting ready for about in Saudi Arabia in the coming months, his eyes have been cast further afield, and recently he outlined intentions of putting on another performance in Dubai, perhaps later this year too.

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The now 32-year-old, who famously won an Olympic Silver medal way back in the 2004 Games in Athens, has long been calling for a fight in the Middle East location of Dubai. There have been plenty of names put forward in the past for such about, but Khan continues to push for the idea of legendary Filipino champion Manny Pacquiao being the one to go toe to toe with him on that possible outing.

Amir Khan has seen Pacquiao up close, likes Mayweather(CC BY-SA 2.0) by Just Entertainment

‘Pacman’ is preparing for a welterweight title clash with Keith Thurman but could maybe be persuaded to finally lock horns with Khan at some stage later this year, particularly if he loses to his next American foe on July 20th. Khan will have already fought Goyat by the time Pacquiao steps into the ring against Thurman, and he’ll hope to have secured a strong win before any potential talks of a Dubai meeting come to fruition on the horizon.

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