Khan targeting big fight after Ramadan

Amir Khan has shelved plans to fight until the autumn after missing out on facing Manny Pacquiao this summer.

Khan will now not box until after the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which ends June 24, which means he will have been out of action for over a year by the time he returns.

Khan (31-4, 19 KOs), 30, has spent the last four months training in San Francisco but his team have failed to land him the deal and opponents he wants since his knockout defeat to Saul Alvarez last May.

“Training with Virgil Hunter and Tony Brady has gone great and I’ve had the chance to work and focus on a lot of things that I wanted to,” Khan said in a statement Monday.

“I’ve been able to see how my hand has responded in camp since my operation on it late last year. It’s felt very good and I’ve not had any problems with it, which I’m pleased about.

“That was my main reason for trying to get a tune up fight before Ramadan, so that I could test out my hand. Because it’s responded so well to some hard sparring and in the gym, day-after-day, I’m now looking to get a bigger fight after Ramadan.

“I’ve spoken with [adviser] Al Haymon and there are several big fights out there which we’re working on, which I’m sure you’ll all love.

“I want to give fans the biggest and most meaningful fights rather than just any opponent. I’m feeling good and at just 30 my aim and focus is to win another world title. In the meantime, I’m going to keep training while I’m back home and look forward to announcing some big news soon.”

Khan, who was last world champion six years ago, is now aiming to return to action between September and November, with eight-weight world champion Pacquiao (59-6-2, 38 KOs) top of his wish list of opponents.

Khan may have faced Alvarez last year but he has had repeated knock backs when it comes to getting in the ring with the sport’s biggest names.

Floyd Mayweather snubbed him and Pacquiao has chosen to face an alternative opponent — Australian Jeff Horn — to defend his WBO world welterweight title against in Brisbane on July 2.

Talks to face fellow Briton Kell Brook (36-1, 25 KOs) — a big fight in the UK — also broke down for a second successive year, leaving Brook to defend his IBF world welterweight title against mandatory challenger Errol Spence in Sheffield on May 27.