Trust Amir to step on Vargas

AMIR KHAN knows he is in the last chance saloon, one defeat away from retirement.

Will Samuel Vargas be the man to usher him out of the door?

They are similar fighters in many ways. They can both punch and there is the same vulnerability about the chin.

The difference is Vargas has not reached the level Khan has, and that should be the difference in Birmingham tonight.

As soon as Vargas has stepped up, against Danny Garcia and Errol Spence Jnr, he has been overpowered. This is a pressure fight for Vargas. It could be that he freezes in the hostile atmosphere. For whatever reason he seems to fall apart in this kind of fight.

Khan (left) retains all the qualities that took him to unified champion at super lightweight. He has not changed dramatically in style no matter who has been in his corner.

He can genuinely fight and, my goodness, is he brave. But that fragility is always there. He was ahead against Saul Alvarez after five rounds and in the fight with Garcia before being hit on the button. He admits he should never have taken the Canelo fight. His heart rules his head. Khan was never a middleweight. He has settled on welterweight now, which suits him best.

I have always liked Khan as a fighter. I like his courage. Safety first never did it for me. In heart and achievements Khan has to go down as one of the best British fighters of the modern era.