Oscar De La Hoya: Amir Khan won't fight Humberto Soto in April

Despite reports that Humberto Soto was a potential opponent for Amir Khan when Khan returns to the ring in the United Kingdom on April 20, Golden Boy's Oscar De La Hoya says plainly that Soto is not being considered for the fight.

Soto (59-8-2, 34 KO) was seen on Showtime last June, where he was overpowered by Lucas Matthysse and retired from the fight after five rounds despite leading on two of three scorecards and being even on the third. The 32-year-old Mexican followed that with a win in November over Jose Lopez, a closely-scored fight in Mexico fought at welterweight. Soto has won world titles at super featherweight and lightweight, as well as an interim title at featherweight.

De La Hoya says that Khan will likely try to take on a top fighter, but there's no telling what that means. Golden Boy has recently considered Shane Mosley a "top fighter," and probably said the same about Paul McCloskey when Khan fought him in 2011. That's no knock on Khan, who does legitimately take on stern competition frequently, but Oscar would call anyone Khan faces a tough opponent, because that's what he's supposed to do.

Khan's fight will be televised in the United States on Showtime.