Amir Khan Explains Why He Lost His Cool - "I Had To Put Him In His Place"

Amir Khan is back in the boxing spotlight after nearly two years of making headlines for the wrong reasons. Although yesterday’s press conference incident did not exemplify the most well-mannered behaviour but at least Khan is back in action officially in the boxing world.

Lo Greco had all the verbal bullets at his disposal and sure enough, he fired every single one at Khan without remorse. With a packed audience of fans and media anticipating Khan’s answer, the former world champion fought fire with fire or in this instance with water.

WATCH: @amirkingkhan's pre-fight press conference with @Phil_Lo_Greco was temporarily halted after a scuffle broke out between the fighters! ? More here: https://t.co/v2l4iEpxqt #KhanLoGreco https://t.co/o6dmH8iosA

— Sky Sports Boxing (@SkySportsBoxing) January 30, 2018

“The reason what I did what I did was to tell him that you’re on my ground, you’re in my country. What he is saying is wrong. Normally in boxing it’s ‘he can’t take a punch’ or ‘he gets knocked out’, it’s fine. It’s a sport. But when it starts getting personal it is wrong,” commented Khan to Boxing Social.

“It might be different in America but I’ve been in press conferences in America and it’s never been like that. I think what he said, he was being disrespectful. That’s why I had to put in his place and to tell him you need to stop,” he continued.

He got what what he asked for, What a joker. Can’t wait for the fight on 21st April, Liverpool we coming. https://t.co/d7WxHZGjvk

— Amir Khan (@amirkingkhan) January 30, 2018

The question now is: did Lo Greco truly get under Khan’s skin and will it have an effect on fight night?

Khan says he’s experienced and mature enough to not let that happen.

“I think that will only tell on the night of the fight. Some fighters at times can lose it. All that hype can get to them. They can get so angry that they lose the gameplan. But I’m not gonna let that happen to me. I’m older now. If I was a little bit younger I would make that mistake like I did against Garcia [Danny] but now being a bit older makes you more mature. You understand it a little bit more and I’ll make sure I won’t make that mistake in the ring especially now,” he explained.

Despite the losses and inactivity, Khan is still only 31 and the former world champion himself says he is in his prime.

I think I’m at the peak of my career now,” Khan said.

“Honestly, I feel better now at 31 than when I was 28. With all that’s happened in my life, it’s only made me a better fighter, a stronger fighter and a more focused fighter because I know that millions of people want to see me fail but I’m not gonna, I’m gonna succeed and I’m gonna keep on succeeding,” he promised.

According to Khan, he isn’t the fighter he used to be – he’s better.

“This is a big fight for me after two years. It is going to be a hard fight for me. It’s going to be a tough fight for me but it’s how I win this fight is what I want to show people. Amir Khan is not as good as he used to be, he’s better than he used to be.”