Question ?What say you on Maidana/Khan ?

Anyone else think a Khan/Berto fight would be guaranteed fireworks? Both guys have fast hands and decent pop and their chins are vulnerable, and one is tall and rangy while the other is shorter but stronger physically, would make for an interesting contrast in styles and since both guys aren`t averse to mixing it up it would be a helluva fight, one that would likely end in a kayo for one of them I reckon.

 

Lets get this straight. All he was doing was showing the effects of a punch - alaram bells ringing for sure. He was hit by a serious puncher and did a silly dance. He's not got a concrete chin like a Chavez who hardly awknowledged punches that got banged off his chin. He never went down. People are either stupid or not being sensible with their views on his chin. When valuing and rating a chin you need to look at who the opponent is who's landing the punches. Maidana can hit, no question. People with bad chins gets stopped and knocked on their asses.

Khan never went down last night from a single punch. When the single punch came his way, he showed the effects of it. When more shots came his way, he still never went down. At times during these periods of being hurt he came back with effective punches.

 

What is worthy of noting is that Kahn had all this beautiful lateral movement, and movement in general, and Maidana could never get set...

But as soon as Kahn got hurt, it seemed he forgot how to move laterally and started going straight back, catching more punches... It was a real drama to watch, like when Hearns was struggling with Leonard. He didn't have it in his survival mode or instinct to hold on, both guys just seemed lost while hurt and under fire...

 

Look, on his showing last night, his chin would be rated "decent", or even "good" if Maidana is really this monster puncher people are saying he is.

But one showing is not enough to make an entire judgment, even if your last fight deserves to be considered of primary significance. And this showing wasn't an incredible display of serious chin to totally revise what's gone on before.

People are saying Khan's chin has clearly improved dramatically. We could just as easily say, "what happened to Maidana's power ?".
I mean, Willie Limond is a powderpuff puncher, Breidis Prescott wins with first punch .... therefore Khan's chin is terrible.
But then, Maidana is a monster puncher, Khan takes his shots .... therefore Khan's chin is good.
But what if : Khan's chin is terrible, Maidana unloads and can't even knock him down .... therefore Maidana's has average power.

 

Taking a knee is always a matter of strategy.
If you take a knee, no one can say if you needed to, just that you felt that you needed to. If you dont take the knee you might just end up reeling around the ring getting hunted down and seeing the round out in that manner, ala Khan. But no one can know that if you indeed take the knee.
:good

 

First part. Correct. Taking a knee due to being hurt is like giving in to what is coming your way. However, taking a knee can be a wise idea and is better than staying on your feet and possibly getting knocked out. Either way, it's weak punch resistance.

Weak punch resistance was there last night with Khan to a degree as he showed the effects of punches but at the same time showed a good chin as he wasn't knocked down. Who's that for summoning things up? Sounds ok to me.

Fighters who were going to do better than Khan last night would have taken Maidana's punches and not showed the effects of the punches at all. These type of fighters are top tier guys like Hagler, Lamotta, Chavez, McCullough, etc.

 

I feel the reason Maidana was allowed the big rounds was because of Khan's chin. He landed one big punch that stunned Khan and allowed Maidana to get stuck in and take advantage of him being stunned.

I think a more solid fighter could have afforded to take 1 or 2 Maidana shots without getting battered around the ring in that round.

See above.

Agreed.

Now when I watch a Khan fight I wont be holding my breath every time he gets hit. I do agree he needs to learn how to take a knee, I think last night he could have been trying to prove his machismo.

 

Yes, because people are fickle on the matter of Khan's chin. Some of those people who would have banged on about his "weak chin" had he taken a knee are in fact marvelling over his chin because he stayed on two feet.

Personally, I will change my rating of his chin if/when the evidence mounts. His chin held up last night, against a guy with a reputation as a puncher, but it was very touch-and-go. Not enough evidence to revise the "weak chin" diagnosis he's earned over the years.

 

Or if Maidana had been a bit more competent in setting his punches up.But he didn't have the tools for it and his power isn't THAT good.Not good enough to compensate for marginal talent in most other areas.

Khan definitely proved a lot of the more extreme opinions on his current durability wrong though i'd say, but it's hardly a given to say he is any better than the Terry Norris level of durability.Better than Errol Christie at least.