The Top Ten British Lightweights by Allan Williams Jul 21st 2008

In the light of the demolition of Lee Meager at the hands of John Murray for the British title, another new addition to BBN's writing staff, Allan Williams, assesses the British Lightweight scene - by far the most interesting domestic division. 10. Scott Lawton (23-4-1, 4 KOs) The former English lightweight champion has been relegated to fighting journeymen since back-to-back stoppage losses at the hands of Jon Thaxton and Amir Khan last year. Decent skills yet a lack of firepower have seen Lawton come up short in title challenges, and you feel that Lawton is now a gatekeeper on the domestic scene. 9. Dave Stewart (22-2, 5 KOs) Outboxed former British champion Jon Thaxton for the first six rounds until his stamina let him down in the 12th, Stewart has solid skills but question marks continue to abound regarding his chin. That being said, Stewart has been touted as a possible opponent for Amir Khan to showcase his talents on September 6. 8. Lee Meager (21-3-2, 8 KOs) The former British champion sadly looked like a walking punch-bag against John Murray and now seems to be a spent force in the division. However he once again showed the qualities of his chin as Murray fired away, and could still feature domestically. 7. Martin Gethin (14-0-1, 6 KOs) Stopped the previously unbeaten Nadeem Siddique on the undercard of the Murray/Meager clash, Gethin had built up his record with journeymen. A scheduled English title fight with John Fewkes will go a long way to proving what both men have to offer in the future. 6. Graham Earl (25-3, 12 KOs) In spite of the fact that Earl has not looked the same since his war with Michael Katsidis in February 2007, the former British and Commonwealth lightweight champion still possesses the skills to compete at this level. However after being caught cold by Amir Khan in December, Earl has not yet shown an inclination to return to the ring. 5. John Fewkes (17-0, 2 KOs) The skilful Yorkshireman was originally set to fight John Murray for the vacant English title in May until illness canned the fight. Fewkes possesses skills and impressive wins over Craig Watson and Tontcho Tontchev but has not shown any inclination that he has knockout power. 4. Willie Limond (29-2, 8 KOs) Gave Amir Khan all he could handle before being stopped in the eighth, the former Commonwealth lightweight champion has looked good since moving up in weight, however a lack of knockout power lets him down at the top level. 3. Jon Thaxton (33-8, 18 KOs) Thaxton is the veteran of the list, with previous wars at light-welterweight against Ricky Hatton and Eamonn Magee, the former British champion never gives up, best shown by his stoppage of Dave Stewart in 2007. However the one-sided defeat against Yuri Romanov last time out suggests he has found his level and at 33, his time may have passed. 2. John Murray (25-0, 13 KOs) The new British lightweight champion looked very impressive in his stoppage of Lee Meager last night. The former WBC World Youth lightweight champion has many attributes and a fight with Amir Khan would be a domestic dream, however a seeming lack of head movement could let him down at the highest level. That being said, Murray is young and has time on his side. 1. Amir Khan (18-0, 14 KOs) The Commonwealth champion is the much-touted golden boy of British boxing. Lightning fast and powerful at this level, Khan holds wins over four of the fighters in this list. In a rush for world honours but questions persist over his defence and his chin. A solid opponent on September 6 should again show a little more of what Khan can do, and if he picks a trainer who can perfect his defence Khan certainly has the potential to be a world champion.

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Correction Jul 22nd 2008, 11:13:50 by firetrap Amir only has wins over 3   put up or shut up! Jul 21st 2008, 05:49:07 by tommy gunn i have no personal problems with amir khan as a fighter i admire him and feel one day he could fulfill his potential. That said he has to stop avoiding fighters and step up. hes no longer a child. he wants to be taken seriously then fighters like thaxton and now murray have to stop being avoided. he should be fighting people like yuri romanov whos not only the european champion but also a top ten rated fighter in most of the world titles opinions. convincing wins over past it or never was fighters is no longer good enough for someone claiming to be the best in the world. even barry mcguigan said if you went to any gym in LA you would find a hundred young fast ptoentially great mexican lightweights who would all be a contest for amir khan and would probably have a better defence. the times come for amir to step up. on Sep 6 amir needs a convincing win over a convincing opponent then Ill accept hes truely the best in britain then we'll talk about being the worlds best!