Summary Although he's been chasing Mayweather for years, Khan insisted he won't look past Algieri
NEW YORK (AFP) - Britain s former world champion Amir Khan is aiming to punch his ticket to a bout with Floyd Mayweather on Friday with a victory over Chris Algieri in a non-title welterweight fight.
Khan, the former unified light-welterweight world champion who headlines a card at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, is reckoned to have the inside track on a fight with unbeaten pound-for-pound king Mayweather.
Although he s been chasing Mayweather for years, Khan insisted he won t look past Algieri.
"Winning this fight is everything to me. I m not looking past Chris because I ve made that mistake in the past," Khan said this month. "There are bigger fights out there for me, but this is my focus."
Khan brings a record of 30-3 with 19 knockouts to the bout, his last outing a convincing 12-round decision over Devon Alexander in Las Vegas in December that cemented Khan s move to the 147-pound welterweight division.
It was his fourth straight victory under trainer Virgil Hunter after back-to-back defeats to Lamont Peterson and Danny Garcia brought a split from legendary conditioner Freddie Roach.
"Virgil Hunter has been great for me as a fighter and he s helped me really understand the sport of boxing," Khan said. "I ve worked on my technique and my defense and really just everything.
"I m focused on my opponent and I m not going to make any mistakes."
Algieri suffered the first defeat of his career last November -- a six knockdown drubbing by Philippines icon Manny Pacquiao in Macau.
"I wasn t happy with my last performance at all," said Algieri, who is 20-1 with eight knockouts.
"I know I belong here at the elite level and it s time for me to prove it."
While Khan is thought to be the front-runner for a shot at Mayweather -- who took his record to 48-0 with a 12-round decision over Pacquiao on May 2 -- Algieri believes an upset win on Friday would put him in the frame.
"We re all fighting for a shot at Mayweather," he told USA Today."
"He s the best in the world. Whether you re fighting just for money or you re fighting for the competition of it all, he s the one."
