Amir Khan insists he will never fight Kell Brook because 'he isn't a big name' and he doesn't like him

Khan suffered a brutal knockout defeat by Saul Alvarez on Sunday morning but hopes of an all-British affair with Brook have been dismissed

(Getty)

Amir Khan has declared he will never fight British rival Kell Brook because he is not the “big name” that the Bolton boxer wants to fight, while he also admitted “I don’t like him”.

Khan is recovering from the brutal knockout defeat he suffered at the hands of Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez, with the 25-year-old Mexican retaining his WBC middleweight championship after delivering the devastating right hand to Khan’s jaw in the sixth round of their Las Vegas fight in the early hours of Sunday morning.

The loss dealt Khan his fourth defeat of his career – the third to have come by way of a stunning knockout – and he immediately admitted that his next fight will be back at welterweight after attempting to step up to 155lbs in order to face Canelo.

That admission set the stage for a domestic dust-up with Brook, the current IBF welterweight world champion, but Khan has dismissed the prospect of facing the Sheffield boxer due to a combination of his reputation in the sport and his sheer dislike for the 30-year-old.

"Eddie Hearn [Brook's promoter] keeps saying Brook is a big draw, but he's not," Khan said a day after his loss to Alvarez.

"I respect him, he's got a world title, but he's not a big name. He's gone down his route, I've gone down my route and I don't like him.

"I want to fight the biggest names, leave a great legacy and I've only got a few fights left.

"I was out-boxing Canelo for six rounds, so I can go straight into another big fight. So I don't think the Kell Brook fight will happen."

Khan had hoped to face either Floyd Mayweather or Manny Pacquiao in their respective last fights before retirement, only for both of them to dodge the 2004 Olympic silver medallist and take on other opponents. That left the door open for Khan to face Brook, but despite talks being held with Brook’s promoter Hearn, Khan instead decided to step up in weight to face Canelo in what was ear-marked as a dangerous fight given the weight difference.

Brook does not have his next opponent lined up following his victory over Kevin Bizier in March, but the hope that he could finally get his wish and face Khan looks to have died – with Khan being lined up for a rematch against Danny Garcia, the current WBC welterweight world champion who knocked him out back in their 2012 encounter – leaving Brook with the possibility of facing WBO champion Jessie Vargas in a unification bout.

Brook wasted little time in calling out Khan after his defeat by Alvarez, as he wrote on Twitter: “I’m here, all British showdown @amirkingkhan”. Brook added: "He's had some bad knockouts. I punch just as hard as Canelo. It would just be a matter of time before the same thing happened."

With Khan targeting the big fights that he believes are on his radar, it calls into question how many bouts the former Olympian has ahead of himself before retiring, with suggestions that he could hang up his gloves after two or three more fights circulating among the boxing world.