Amir Khan: Speed, power, hunger will be there in move to 147

Amir Khan believed that moving up from 135 to 140 pounds would make him stronger and a better fighter, and maybe it did. Khan now believes that his next move up to a full 147, after one catchweight fight at 143 last year, will again improve his game:

"Weight making can affect a fighter, I was killing myself to make weight, going back to the Zab Judah fight when I was first having problems. I think now being at 147lbs its only going to make me stronger, more healthier and happier when I go into a fight.

"The speed's gonna be there, the power, and the hunger as well. I won't be tired or weak, so I'm excited. The future holds a lot of things for me."

At 27, he's about on schedule for this move up, really, and Khan (28-3, 19 KO) may well be better off now at 147 than he was at 140 in his last couple of fights. But the extra few pounds last year against Julio Diaz certainly didn't make him look much better, as he hit the canvas and scraped by in a fight where he was heavily favored.

Will Khan be better at 147, or just a 147-pound version of Amir Khan, with all the same flaws and strengths? Probably the latter, but we'll see. Khan is overdue to schedule his first fight of 2014, with it seeming as though Luis Collazo has the inside track.