Super Judah or King Khan?

On Saturday, July 23, at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, 24-year-old British sensation Amir “King” Khan (25-1, 17KOs) squares off against Brooklyn’s Zab “Super” Judah (41-6, 28KOs), in a world title unification bout broadcast on HBO. The 12 round WBA / IBF Jr. Welterweight championship main attraction is presented by Golden Boy Promotions and Main Events.

Also making appearances on the card will be Peter “Kid Chocolate” Quillin (24-0, 18KOs), in the 10 round super middleweight co-feature against Jason “The Hammer” LeHoullier (21-5-1, 8KO), as well as James Kirkland (28-1, 25KOs), Gary Russell Jr. (16-0, 10KOs) and Ronny Rios (14-0, 6KOs).

As of late, 33-year-old IBF Jr. Welterweight titlist Zab Judah has experienced somewhat of a renaissance, returning from boxing obscurity to climb all the way back to boxing’s elite. Having the opportunity to once again become one of the pound-for-pound best in the twilight of his career.

Not only did “Super” Judah rejuvenate his career but the southpaw purist made some changes, somewhat re-inventing himself under the tutelage of southpaw legend Pernell “Sweet Pea” Whitaker. Thus far the results have spoken for themselves as you can see the changes the defensive wizard Pernell Whitaker has incorporated into Zab’s game. Judah has become more defensive minded and elusive as Whitaker has him bending at the waist, using different angles and moving his head well. He also has “Super” Judah utilizing the ring better than ever with good footwork while moving from side to side instead of backing straight up leaving himself open to bombs.

In Zab’s last two outings I thought he showed as many weaknesses as he did strengths. Yes, Zab is showing improvements in all those defensive area’s as mentioned, his knock out power is still there and while his speed might of lost a mile or two, he remains one of the quickest in the division. With that said, Judah’s work rate has taken a hit as he doesn’t throw as many punches as we are used to seeing from the New York pugilist. Of course some of that’s the incorporation of “Sweet Pea’s” defensive characteristics, and some of it’s age. That’s not to say Zab’s trigger shy or barely working, he’s still busy enough to keep the action going with nothing to complain about. He just doesn’t throw as many punches as he used to, and will be going up against a non stop speedster in Bolton, Lancashire’s Amir Khan.

Zab’s offense is still very good, he’s the strongest and best counter puncher Khan’s faced. His laser beam straight left, uppercut and right hook can end it and he’s a good body puncher. Zab doesn’t show as many uppercuts as he used to but Whitaker has him jabbing better, and what could be more important than that?

Like “King” Khan, Zab’s chin has always been suspect, yet I believe he doesn’t take a punch as well as he used to and gets hurt more often these days. Judah was hurt in each one of his last two fights against Kaizer Mabuza and Lucas Matthysse, who more than likely would of finished Zab had he another round or two. Judah’s stamina and confidence are also questionable, Zab can be made to quit, especially when he’s tired. When it comes down to it, do Zab’s strength’s at this point in his career outweigh his weaknesses?

On the other hand, the youthful WBA Jr. Welterweight Champion Amir Khan definitely has more strengths than weaknesses, but let’s be honest, those weaknesses are big one’s. First and foremost Khan is there to be hit, his ego gets the best of him and he leaves himself wide open and reckless, leading the way to his biggest fault, his chin. Zab is a powerful sharp shooter, making Khan’s style, and chin, seem tailor made for a spectacular kayo upset by Judah.

While Khan’s defense is suspect, he doesn’t leave much to be desired offensively as long as he’s fighting and not running. Amir has good lateral movement and boxes well on the move while employing a feverish output and pace. Like Judah, “King” Khan has knock out power in each fist with many different punches to show. Khan’s straight right is devastating, similar is his left hook to the liver and he’s the fastest in the division. Khan throws good uppercuts and pretty much has every punch, utilizing both hands very well. The one thing he could do more of though is jab, he tends to want to go toe-to-toe early on and forgets to jab. That could be deadly against Zab.

After all the observations and opinions, this really is a hard fight to call. I think Khan is an amazing talent with tremendous ability, a virtuoso fighter like a young Zab. And while my first instincts told me it would be an easy win for Khan, his defense and so-called thin beard — especially against a guy with the power and ability of Judah — just doesn’t allow for that kind of assurance.

With that said, I’m taking Khan to win by late round stoppage. I just feel Khan has too many tools, his conditioning is better and he possesses a desire to win that can push a fighter to that next level. Zab has shown the opposite in that department, losing most of his big fights due to mental inadequacies rather than physical. Judah’s found himself in the trenches many times and hasn’t shown the wherewithal to conquer the mental adversity of such dire situations.

Zab’s only chance in my opinion is to catch Amir with a big one early when the Brit is revved up and looking to trade. Here’s why I don’t believe that will happen though. While Khan might not have the best chin, I thought his fight with power punching Marcos Maidana proved that he has a chin, which can withstand some heavy strikes. Maidana stunned Amir a few times early in their championship fight with huge bombs that were right on the button. It’s not like Amir only took three or four big one’s, “King” Khan survived numerous booming shots from the Argentinian and was almost finished in the 10th frame by a thunderous right hand but didn’t lay down and overcame the adversity. A guy with no chin couldn’t stand up to that many Maidana bombs, period.

A good strategy is to catch Amir late when he’s tired from punching himself out, but Zab also gasses and will probably have less in the tank down the stretch than the Armenian born fighter. After Khan’s last fight, I suspect trainer Freddie Roach has expressed the need to take his time and pick his shots without being reckless. I do not expect the guns blazing all out warfare style Amir employed early on against Maidana which left Khan faded and vulnerable late in the fight, especially when they’re aware of Zab’s suspect conditioning.

I thought Judah looked good early against Matthysse but was having problems with Lucas’ power, every time Zab got hit you could see the affects and it wore him down as the fight went on. Amir hits hard too, and is significantly busier than Matthysse with more weapons. In Judah’s fight with Kaizer Mabuza he wasn’t as busy and didn’t land many significant strikes until he dropped the hammer in the 7th round knocking out Mabuza with a beautiful left. Khan will be on top of Zab like Sheen on strippers, pushing a pace Judah’s not fond of which doesn’t bode well for him as I believe he’s only a six or seven round fighter. Mabuza, whose nowhere near as fast as Khan, was able to land the straight right up top and repeatedly connected to Judah’s body. Khan has a deadly right hand and a killer left hook to the liver.

On that same note, Zab is much faster than Maidana who was able to hit Khan repeatedly, although I think Amir will be able to withstand Judah’s early onslaught, believing his chin to be thicker than the consensus.

I believe they’ll be exchanging heavy artillery early, in some good back and forth action that will see both men stunned, wobbled or hurt at some point in the first six rounds. Amir will weather the storm as will Judah, but when it hits the 7th or 8th round I suspect Zab will fade and lose heart when he doesn’t put Khan to sleep. Resulting in a 9th or 10th round Amir Khan stoppage, courtesy a left hook to the body!

What do you the readers think? Does veteran Zab Judah still have it in him to attain the biggest win of his career, or will he be overwhelmed by youth and speed?