Amir Khan vs Saul Alvarez: Khan delivers wow factor by fixing Vegas superfight with Canelo

During the last six months Amir Khan has been overlooked by both Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao, but he has finally agreed terms to fight the best active boxer in the world, Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, in Las Vegas on 7 May.

The fight will be made at 155lb, but will be for the WBC’s 160lb middleweight title, which Alvarez, who has lost just once in 48 fights, won last November when he beat Miguel Cotto in what was a boxing masterclass and also a catchweight fight.

Khan has not fought since May of last year, when he officially weighed 146lb but probably tipped the scales in excess of 165lb when he climbed through the ropes. Since that fight, which was a wide win over Chris Algieri in New York, Khan has been in and out of serious and ultimately disappointing negotiations with representatives from the Mayweather and Pacquiao camps.

When Pacquiao picked a third fight against Tim Bradley – Khan had believed that the fight was his – and it was officially announced on the last day of 2015, the negotiations for the Alvarez-Khan fight moved to a new level and it is understood the deal was agreed last Friday. It is amazing that it was kept secret for so long and the shock announcement late yesterday had the desired “wow” effect that so few fight announcements have in the modern, multimedia world.

“It was getting to a point where I thought that I would not get a big fight,” said Khan, who has also been on humanitarian duty, having driven trucks to Greece to feed refugees and hired a boat to deliver food during the floods in the north of England last year. Khan has been a tireless charity worker since winning a silver medal at the 2004 Athens Olympics.

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“This is a great fight for me now and nobody can argue that I have taken an easy fight; Alvarez is one of the best boxers in the world,” added Khan. “I wanted a big name, a big fight and a challenge and this fight delivers all three.”

There had been false talk of a domestic showdown against Kell Brook, the IBF welterweight champion from Sheffield, and several acrimonious rows on Twitter between Khan and the management of Brook were lively but clearly a glorious smokescreen.

Khan insisted: “I have always said that I don’t need Brook – he needs me.”

Alvarez is still only 25, having gone professional in his native Mexico when he was just 15 and having had 21 fights by the time he turned 18. He won his first world title in 2011 and made six defences before the only blemish on his record, a loss in a frustrating fight to Mayweather in 2013. Since the Mayweather fight Alvarez has won four bouts – and all were main-event attractions against top names.

“I know that Khan will come and fight,” said Alvarez. “That is what I want and that is what the fans want to see on Cinco de Mayo weekend. This will be a win for Mexico.”

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The Cinco de Mayo weekend in Las Vegas is the most lucrative date in the boxing business and originally the holiday celebrated a victory by the Mexican army in the 19th century.

Alvarez is the star of the date, which is now firmly fixed as a boxing night, and his fight with Khan is big enough to move out of the MGM Grand Arena and become the first boxing event at the brand new T-Mobile Arena on the Las Vegas Strip.

Khan and Alvarez are likely to embark on a six- or seven-city tour, with a possible stop in London, before they return to their respective gyms to prepare for the 7 May fight. It is a big, big event and Khan deserves it.