Amir Khan may not be looking past Julio Diaz tomorrow in Sheffield, but the 26-year-old former titleholder is itching to get his next world title shot, and rematches with Lamont Peterson and Danny Garcia, who beat him in back-to-back fights in 2011-12.
"I need to keep winning and work my way back to the world titles," Khan told AFP. "I'm determined to win them again. I'm staying at light-welterweight because I want to fight Lamont Peterson and Danny Garcia again -- I have unfinished business with them and want to avenge my losses. This fight will take me to a world title shot, hopefully in my next bout."
Khan (27-3, 19 KO) will face Diaz (42-7, 29 KO) at a catchweight of 143 pounds, which accommodated Diaz, who was recently fighting at welterweight, and Khan, who now doesn't have to boil off those extra few pounds for a non-title fight, as he returns to fight in the UK for the first time in two years.
Amir also manages to bring up his dream fight, which has not served him well in the past:
"Mayweather is still possible. Not many people are in the same league as fighting him but as long as I don't make many any more mistakes, then why not?"
Trainer Virgil Hunter, who will be working his second fight with Khan, sees no reason his fighter can't be a world champ again:
"He is in great physical shape, he is still young, he has strength of character. He is the only fighter I have known personally - and I've known some - in the world of boxing who hasn't been affected by a knockout.
"His troubles have been connected to mistakes and not that the other guy was better than him. Because of that, he is still intact confidence-wise."
If Khan is going to get back into these fights, he needs to deal with Diaz tomorrow, obviously, and the Mexican veteran does have enough power that he can't be totally ignored as a possible live dog. If Amir slips up again, first of all, those big fight dreams are really hurting, and second of all, it would be time for everyone to stop calling it "slipping up."