ANDREAS KOTELNIK vs AMIR KHAN

Was it just a fluke when Amir Khan got knocked out by Breidis Prescott, or is the British prospect one of those fighters who flatter to deceive? The answer might be forthcoming in Manchester on Saturday when, just 10 months after Prescott blew him away in a 54-second shocker, Khan challenges Ukrainian Andreas Kotelnik for the WBA 140-pound title.

Famed British promoter Jack Solomons used to say that fight fans have short memories. If Khan comes through against Kotelnik, the Prescott debacle might not be forgotten but it will certainly be forgiven as just a lapse of concentration by a brilliant young boxer.

Khan has said that losing to Prescott was the best thing that could have happened to him, because he was becoming complacent and the stunning defeat made him renew his commitment to becoming a great champion.

I don’t think that getting bombed out in 54 seconds is ever a good thing for a fighter, but it may have marked a major turning point in Khan’s career. Khan chose to relocate to Los Angeles and train under the wing of Freddie Roach at the Wild Card gym in his pursuit of excellence.

Khan feels that he has improved immeasurably — mentally, technically and physically — since hooking up with Roach, while the greatly respected trainer sees Khan as a future superstar.

Khan’s technical decision win over a smaller, faded Marco Antonio Barrera in March didn’t really prove anything. On Saturday, though, Khan is facing without doubt his most difficult fight. Kotelnik is tough, smart and skilled. He is much more experienced professionally than Khan — and, like the British fighter, he was an Olympic Games lightweight silver medallist, each losing to Cuba’s masterful Mario Kindelan.

People who understand boxing are divided on this fight. There are those who feel that Khan’s chin is so vulnerable that Kotelnik, even though not considered a very hard hitter, will be able to knock him out with a well-timed right hand or left hook.

Others put down Khan’s loss to Prescott as an aberration and feel that in Saturday’s fight the 22-year-old will reveal the glittering talent that his supporters have always maintained he possesses.

Money has been pouring in on Khan at wagering establishments, both online and at the British betting shops. Bookmakers in the U.K. will be hoping for a Kotelnik victory due to a liability of millions of pounds should Khan win.

Is the players’ confidence in Khan justified?

I turned to a boxing figure who has up-close experience of Kotelnik — the celebrated trainer Brendan Ingle. He was in the other corner when his fighter, Junior Witter, eked out a narrow decision over Kotelnik four years ago. “Khan will destroy this fella,” Ingle said over the phone from his home in Sheffield. “People are surprised when I say this. They say: ‘Kotelnik gave your guy Witter a close fight, we thought you’d be picking him to win.’ The thing is, different fighters make different fights. Khan will stand this guy on his head. He’s too young, too big, too fast, too powerful. I’ve been wrong before and I’ll be wrong again, but I think Khan’s gonna stop him. It won’t go 10 rounds.”

Khan has the advantages in youth and speed, to be sure, and although he has moved up from lightweight he looked the bigger man at the weigh-in on Friday.

Kotelnik is an excellent fighter of the Eastern European school, with a tight defence and an impressive array of sharp, crisp punches. His win over Marcos Maidana in February looks even better after the Argentinean’s thrilling triumph over Victor Ortiz.

However, Khan’s promoter, Frank Warren, sees Kotelnik as a beatable champion. Kotelnik is a fine technician but he isn’t especially fast or hard hitting (just 13 stoppage wins in 34 fights).

Khan’s collapse against Prescott is a concern, as are knockdowns he suffered against Willie Limond (who has never been regarded as a really hard hitter) and a ring-worn Michael Gomez. He was dropped in the amateurs, too, by Craig Watson.

In every fight apart from the one with Prescott, though, Khan got up to win. He is unlikely ever again to go out and stand in front of a fighter with hands down the way he did against Prescott. In just 10 months, and after two fights with Roach as his trainer, Khan already looks much savvier and more mature in the ring.

Khan impressed me with his zest and high-energy boxing against Barrera. He was like a thoroughbred racing home and leaving the field behind. Kotelnik is a steady, well-ordered technical boxer who doesn’t make many mistakes, but I think he will have problems with the rapid movement, jabs and combinations of the British boxer.

It took Kotelnik 12 rounds to stop a much smaller man in Gavin Rees, a fighter I think that Khan would have overwhelmed inside seven or eight rounds.

Kotelnik’s two fights with Souleymane M’baye might be considered revealing. They were both very close — a split decision defeat in France and a draw in the U.K. — but we now know that M’baye is nothing special.

One must respect Kotelnik as a gritty, durable craftsman, but I believe that Khan is going to be able to get off to a fast start and then keep in front, quite possibly bedazzling and bothering Kotelnik with his constant-motion, fast-punching style. I’m picking Khan, most likely by decision although if he can consistently trigger off shots to the body — and Freddie Roach says that this will be part of the strategy — I could envisage victory coming via a late-rounds TKO.