Boxing: Khan Keen 'to Look Good and Win'

Amir Khan will tell anybody who cares to ask that his ambition is to emulate his hero Muhammad Ali and become a boxing legend. With an Olympic silver medal at 17 he is on his way. But after the adulation and almost endless circuit of public appearances that have followed the summer games in Athens he returns to the ring tonight knowing that his every move will be scrutinised in front of a massive audience as he fights for England against the United States at the Olympia in Liverpool.

His opponent, Michael Evans, 27, is the United States champion and promises to provide a stern test for the precociously talented Khan. In nine bouts this year Evans has lost once, and six of his eight victories have come by stoppage.

He also has a point to prove in fighting Khan. "This is my revenge for the Olympics," Evans says, still bitter that he did not even make the box-offs for a place in the US team for Athens. "When the American team was picked for this trip there were two lightweights for the matches [against England] and I told my coach I would only be going if I could fight Khan. I was impressed with him in Athens but now I want to test myself and prove to people what I could have done."

Evans, from Dayton, Ohio, is the oldest member of the US team and scored an emphatic points win over the rising Scottish professional Alex Arthur at the 1998 Goodwill Games, leaving Arthur to reflect: "He is one of the best boxers I have ever fought. At that time he didn't seem to have a weakness."

Since then Evans' appearances have been sporadic - he has completed a university education - and now he claims to be making up for lost time.

Khan's professional aspirations have been put on hold. He has decided to remain in the amateur ranks until next November, when the world championships are staged in China. Thereafter his course is unclear. Where once he said with certainty that he wanted to appear for Great Britain and win a medal at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, he is now more circumspect. "Of course I will turn professional at some stage," he says. "Then I want to be a world champion and finish up a legend and be out of the sport by the time I am 27."

Khan exudes confidence when talking about his future, which he does with disarming honesty. He seems relatively untouched by his success despite becoming a celebrity, especially in his home town of Bolton. "It's got difficult for me to walk down the street without people stopping me to ask for an autograph or to talk to me about boxing," he says.

"I've been to so many dos and presentation dinners and TV shows. I've been among all the top stars - soap stars, people from music, it's been brilliant. But I've kept my feet on the ground. If I get a bit big-headed I get a good clip round the ear from my family and friends. I'm still the same person.

"Now I think it's going to be brilliant getting back in there in my first fight after the Olympics. The fact we have got live television and radio is fantastic. It puts boxing on a good high and we've got to try and keep it there. It will make a big difference for us all - the whole sport.

"I want to win gold medals for Britain and improve the profile of amateur boxing. 2005 is going to be a tough time. There are six or seven multi-nation events we can go to before the world championships. But first I need to look good and win in Liverpool. It's only an hour from home, so all my family and my mates will be there because they've seen me now and want to go to a proper boxing match. There's supporters coming from all over to see me. It's going to be great."

The Amateur Boxing Association of England has put together a package of support for Khan worth £80,000 a year. His earnings go into a trust fund and, with the support of sponsors, including Adidas, and the fruits of his numerous public appearances, it would be no surprise if they exceeded £250,000 a year. Among British professionals only Ricky Hatton, Joe Calzaghe and Danny Williams could be expected to earn significantly more.

Still promoters wait in the wings, hoping to snap up the star when the time is right. Naseem Hamed is known to have expressed an interest and Barry Hearn is believed to have offered a £1m signing-on fee. But Frank Warren remains favourite to get Khan's prized signature and is also close to completing a deal with the ABA for amateurs, including Khan, to fight on professional shows.

The national coach, Terry Edwards, will be in Khan's corner tonight, and emphasises that Khan remains unaffected by the media interest in his competitive return.

"In training camp he's just been one of the lads," he says. "To be honest, the publicity was a surprise to us all when we got back from Athens. But now there is a hell of a lot of expectation and he can't get carried away by the supporters. He just has to concentrate on the opponent in front of him, who is tough, and control his urgency. My job is to help him relax and show what a very special talent he is."

Anything other than a Khan victory would be a major upset but Evans has the experience to take the bout to a points decision.

England v USA line-ups

6.30pm 91kg (heavyweight) Tony Bellew (Rotunda, North West) v Tim Skolnik

7.06pm 60kg (lightweight) Amir Khan (Bury, North West) v Michael Evans (live BBC TV)

Remaining fights follow in weight order

48kg Darran Langley (Hollington, London) v Roberto Ceron

51kg Don Broadhurst (Birmingham Irish, Midlands) v RauShee Warren

54kg Stephen Smith (Rotunda, North West) v Troy Wohosky

57kg Nick McDonald (Vauxhall Motors, North West) v Charles Huerta

64kg Nathan Brough (Salisbury, North West) v Karl Dargan

69kg Martin Murray (St Helens Town, North West) v Daniel Jacobs

75kg Gary Barr (Birtley, North East) v Kenneth Porter

91kg+ David Price (Salisbury, North West) v Gregory Corbin