Amir Khan put in a career-best performance to school Devon Alexander over 12 rounds at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas last weekend, defending his WBC silver welterweight title. 

The punch stats confirm just how dominant Khan was in the fight, connecting with 243 punches compared to Alexander’s 91. 

The judges scored the fight 119-109, 118-110, 120-108 in favour of the Pakistani British-born superstar but no amount of stats or judges’ scorecards come close to describing just how good Khan was on the night. 

In every department — speed, footwork, accuracy, power and defence — the Bolton native was head and shoulders above his opponent, who himself has been a world champion at two different weights.

Devon Alexander is no slouch yet Khan made him look ordinary, peppering him with fluid combinations in every round, demonstrating ring intelligence, control and balance that has significantly improved since his last outing against Luis Collazo back in May. 

His decision to depart Freddie Roach’s stable and team up with Virgil Hunter is clearly paying dividends, especially when it comes to his defence, which since he turned pro after taking the silver at the Athens Olympics in 2000 has been about as solid as paper. 

But with last weekend’s spectacular performance, Amir Khan has made a strong case for why he should be Floyd Mayweather’s next opponent when the pound-for-pound king enters the ring again in May 2015. 

With Mayweather zeroing in on Marciano’s 49-fight unbeaten record, the British champion may well have ruled himself out of contention in the Mayweather sweepstakes precisely because of his performance.

Many feel that Mayweather has shown evidence of decline in his past two fights against Argentina’s Marcos Maidana, whom Khan previously defeated in 2010. 

Granted, in the first fight, Mayweather looked in trouble at times, as Maidana threw everything bar the ringposts at him. Usually a master technician in the art of fighting against the ropes, Maidana hardly gave him room to breathe, never mind counter. 

But in the rematch normal service was resumed, as Floyd this time occupied the centre of the ring and kept it long, punishing the Argentinian’s astounding accuracy and timing. 

Khan undoubtedly possesses the handspeed and intensity to trouble Mayweather, so if the fight does get made it’s guaranteed to be immense.

Another name being touted for Khan to fight next is that of his former stablemate at Roach’s Wildcard Gym, Manny Pacquiao. Unlike Mayweather, Pacman only knows how to fight coming forward throwing punches in bunches. 

His style is suited to Khan’s as a result, who matches him for speed and has superior range.

Then, of course, there’s Sheffield’s Kell Brook, current IBF welterweight champion, who’s keen to share a ring with Khan. 

If that fight went ahead it would be huge in Britain, perhaps even emulating Froch v Groves II at Wembley in scale. 

So on the face of it Khan has options. Ironically, though, his preferred option of a Mayweather fight in May could well have been scuppered due to the quality of his performance last weekend.

Manchester’s popular lightweight, Anthony ‘Ant’ Crolla, has been forced to pull out of his world title fight against Cuba’s Richar Abril on January 23 in Manchester, after being seriously hurt during a struggle with two burglars he chased and confronted close to his home near Oldham.

It comes as a devastating blow and a cruel reminder of the precarious nature of a fighter’s career, both in and out of the ring. 

Crolla’s courage in tackling burglars after spotting them running from a neighbour’s house has put him in hospital with head injuries and a broken ankle, ending his dream — hopefully only temporarily — of bagging a world title.

Years of sacrifice, dedication and determination will now seem wasted, but the most important thing is that he is okay and in a stable condition at time of writing. 

Making this setback even more devastating is that Crolla has had to work harder than most to get his shot. The popular Mancunian at 28 has had 35 fights, losing four of them, and he and his trainer, Joe Gallagher, knew this was probably his first and last chance to claim a belt. 

Ant Crolla will need to summon all of the inner strength and self belief he’s developed during his ring career to fight his way back from this one. Let’s hope he can do it and get himself back into contention sooner rather than later.

Fighting in Vegas the same weekend as Amir Khan was Ireland’s Andy Lee, who recorded a stunning victory of his own with a sixth round stoppage of a tough opponent in the shape of Russia’s Matt Korobov to claim the WBO middleweight title. 

Making Lee’s victory all the sweeter was the fact it was a make or break fight for the likeable middleweight, who at 30 has had his fair share of setbacks to contend with over the years with injuries.

His victory was dedicated to his former trainer, the legendary Emmanuel Steward, who died in 2012. 

Lee’s current trainer is Adam Booth, one of the sharpest brains in boxing, under whose tutelage he’s shown significant improvement. They certainly appear to have forged a close bond, going by Booth’s emotional appearance at the post-fight press conference, where he announced that Lee’s world title victory meant more to him than any of David Haye’s title victories. 

We now have the mouth-watering prospect of a middleweight clash between Lee and Blly Joe Saunders, probably at a venue in Ireland. Both fighters share a common background as products of the Travelling community and both command large followings. 

Look out for this fight happening next summer. You certainly don’t want to miss it.