Our Derek Bilton brings you his latest pound-for-pound British top 10 after a very interesting month of action.
The last time Amir Khan lost a prize fight his people were screaming foul play and laying the blame squarely at the door of the mysterious 'Man in the Hat'.
This time round Team Khan really have to look a little closer to home after the Bolton brawler was bludgeoned to defeat in four rounds by the unbeaten, but unheralded, Danny Garcia.
For the third time in a pro career that began in 2005 Khan was beaten by a heavy underdog in the betting and this was his second heavy stoppage defeat after Breidis Prescott separated him from his senses inside 60 seconds back in 2008.
There is no doubt that Khan is a fine boxer. His speed and athleticism are up there with anyone in the world and he has a punishing, world class jab to boot.
However his chin is distinctly mediocre and the mega fights he has been talking about against the likes of Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao now look further away than ever.
Khan is too brave for his own good at times, a fighter who so far has been unable to master the art of damage limitation in the ring. Rather than covering up, holding or retreating while hurt Khan goes straight at his opponent with reckless abandon.
This trait almost certainly cost him the chance of victory in Las Vegas as until he was tagged by a heavy left hook he was bossing things against WBC (and now WBA) light-welterweight champ Garcia.
In truth I never expected the fight to go 12 rounds but hand on heart I also never expected to see Khan reeling around the ring so alarmingly in Sin City. He was given every chance to regroup by referee Kenny Bayless on the night, but every time the warring factions were separated Khan went straight back into battle despite scrambled senses.
There is much to like about Khan and you can't knock him for the way he rebuilt after the Prescott debacle. But he has lost his last two now and rather than blame Freddie Roach he needs to look within himself and find out whether he can still cut it in the prize ring.
Khan has speed, skill and heart in abundance but without a chin or indeed so much as a 'Plan B' when the bombs start to detonate, I am not sure he will ever fulfil the potential he first showed to the world almost exactly eight years ago at the Athens Olympics.
As depressing as Khan's defeat was, British boxing was given a shot in the arm by David Haye's spectacular stoppage of Dereck Chisora.
It was a fight that divided boxing and Frank Warren came in for plenty of stick for putting it together. But kudos to the wily old London promoter and the two protagonists who conducted themselves like perfect gentlemen and showed that this old game is still called the noble art for good reason.
It was one of the most exciting heavyweight fights I have seen on these shores for many years with Chisora having his moments in a frenetic tussle. However, Haye showed that despite a year out of the ring he still has the tools to cut it at the top level and the finish in round five was borderline sensational.
On the strength of that win Haye moves straight back into second spot in our domestic list at the expense of Khan, who drops to third now just ahead of Kell Brook.
Brook himself hardly covered himself in glory with a win against Carson Jones that asked more questions than it answered. For six rounds 'The Special One' looked just that as he dominated his American opponent and threatened to overwhelm him.
However the tide turned quite alarmingly in the second half of the fight and had it been a 15-round affair I am certain Brook would no longer be unbeaten. As it was he got home on the cards, proving he has heart as well as undoubted talent but it will be interesting to see what changes are made to his camp as he definitely had stamina issues on the night.
A domestic blockbuster against Khan now at welterweight (should the Bolton man move up) would be a huge fight and it looks a realistic option with both men looking to prove the naysayers wrong.
Sportinglife.com pound-for-pound British top 10:
1 Carl Froch
2 David Haye
3 Amir Khan
4 Kell Brook
5 Nathan Cleverly
6 Ricky Burns
7 Darren Barker
8 Kevin Mitchell
9 David Price
10 John Murray
Honourable mentions: Tyson Fury, Matthew Macklin, Rendall Munroe, Scott Quigg, George Groves, Martin Murray, Frankie Gavin and Tony Bellew.
