Canelo's punches are like being 'hit by a baseball bat', reveals Khan

Canelo Alvarez’s punches are like being ‘hit by a baseball bat’, reveals Amir Khan… but British fighter insists Mexican’s Everlast MX gloves are the secret behind his 2016 knockout

  • Canelo Alvarez knocked out Amir Khan in the sixth round in their 2016 fight 
  • Canelo wore Everlast MX gloves but Khan’s hands were too brittle to do the same
  • British fighter insists the gloves can make a huge difference to a fighter’s power 
  • Mexican hero Canelo is weighing up his next move after beating Callum Smith 

Amir Khan insists that Canelo Alvarez’s punches are like being ‘hit by a baseball bat’ but believes the Mexican’s gloves are the reason behind his powerful hitting. 

British fighter Khan was knocked out in the sixth round by all-time Mexican great Canelo back in 2016, in a fight for the WBC middleweight title in Las Vegas. 

Khan was brutally floored by a right hand but he has since revealed that Canelo’s gloves, the Everlast MX, were a contributing factor, while he could not wear the same gloves as his hands were too brittle. 

Canelo Alvarez knocked out Amir Khan with a devastating right hand back in their 2016 fight 

Khan was floored in the sixth round but believes his opponent’s gloves were the key factor

Khan, who hails from Bolton, explained his thinking to FightHype: ‘Every glove is different. When I fought Canelo, he had the Everlast horsehair gloves on.

‘When I put my hand in, it was like pushing to the wall, but you’re going to damage your hand as well.

‘They were solid. It was like being hit with a baseball bat. The foam padding ones, the shape always stays the same. With the horsehair, it fades more towards the back of the hand.

‘So that way, your knuckles are more visible. Without padding in the way, that’s going to put more pressure on your knuckle. So you’re going to be hit with a bare hand.

Khan couldn’t deal with Canelo’s hard-hitting punching style in their middleweight bout 

‘I could never do that because my hands aren’t strong enough to do that. I’d break my hand if I fought like that. Some fighters have the hands where they could punch through a wall and wouldn’t break their hands.’

The 34-year-old is now demanding that boxing commissions insist on both fighters wearing the same gloves, so it is a level playing field in the ring. 

‘When you’re fighting someone, and you know they’re wearing a certain glove, you know what their game plan is,’ Khan added. 

‘You’ve got guys that aren’t really punchers, and they’re going to wear the smaller Reyes gloves. You think this guy is going to try and knock you out. I’m going to have to be smart in this fight and be prepared.

‘Then you’ve got Canelo, who is wearing the MX gloves, and they’ve got nothing in them. I knew that he was just looking for that one big shot. You know the mentality from the type of gloves they’re wearing.’ 

Canelo is currently plotting his next move after beating Callum Smith in December, while Khan has not fought since July 2019 but recently insisted he has not yet retired.  




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