Passive Judah doesn’t give himself fighting chance

The final statistics for Zab Judah in his junior welterweight title fight against Amir Khan on Saturday night read 115 punches thrown.

What it didn't tell you: 100 of them must have come in his dressing room when warming up.

What is it about former world champions in their 30s refusing to fight?

Shane Mosley wouldn't engage Manny Pacquiao here in May, and Judah spent four rounds content with allowing Khan to lead with jabs and rights before wrapping up.

"We would very much like the opportunity to fight him again," said Kathy Duva, promoter for Judah.

Problem: Something that never happened can't be repeated.

Khan won the WBA-IBF unification fight when he set up Judah with a right to the face and followed with a right to the belt in the fifth round, the latter sending Judah to one knee and referee Vic Drakulich to pick up and then finish a 10-count at the 2:47 mark.

It was the best possible result for Judah, who hadn't come close to winning a round. There was value in Judah before the fight at 4-1, but that ended right around the time Michael Buffer began introductions at Mandalay Bay Events Center, which filled in somewhat after a laughable undercard but didn't draw the announced gathering of 7,279.

The punch that hopefully sent Judah into retirement but won't at age 33 was clean. It was squarely on the belt. It was not, as Duva shamefully stated, a low blow.

"I don't expect," she said, "anyone to agree."

A good thing. Anyone who would agree is delusional.

Khan had a small mark on his left cheek afterward, but that easily could have come from the corner wiping his face too hard between rounds than anything Judah did. Khan dominated to that level. He was in total control. He was barely hit, never mind hurt. The kid looked more prepared for a magazine cover shoot than any postfight medical care.

Judah's only chance was to counter those Khan leads, to at least attempt a hook or two, to swing away instead of smothering his opponent. But he never fought. The best hooks his team threw were by trainer Pernell Whitaker between rounds, imploring his fighter to do something other than retreating.

"Had it gone a few more rounds, I would have knocked him out with a clean shot," Khan said. "It was only a matter of time. My speed overwhelmed him, along with my power. I felt that from the beginning. I knew he was getting hurt because he kept moving away and ducking.

"Now I will go back and see what my team has lined up for me next."

What the fight proved is what many assumed beforehand, that Khan is the world's best 140-pounder. Timothy Bradley didn't want to fight Khan before this, and there's no reason to believe he would now.

The plan is for Khan to fight once more in the division, then move to 147 pounds in the spring. The sooner the better for his wallet.

The welterweight division is where opportunities for pay-per-view millions and sold-out arenas exist most today, where the names Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. make their home.

Khan has said it would be difficult to ever fight Pacquiao, as the two share the same trainer -- Freddie Roach -- and have become good friends.

It probably would be best for Khan's record if they didn't.

He showed sharp skills to beat Judah but didn't have to be all that special doing so. I don't think he beats Mayweather or Pacquiao. He might not even beat Victor Ortiz, who probably would be too big and strong.

At least for a few more years.

Khan is 24, a young fighter still learning and improving. He drew the majority of support Saturday, but the crowd was such that a close friend of mine had his upper-deck tickets upgraded to $500 lower bowl seats before the main event.

As title fights go, those in attendance were tame at best.

"The question is, can Amir Khan become as big and as popular as Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao?" said Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions, who handles Khan. "The answer is, absolutely yes. Amir needs big challenges. When he has them, it brings out his best. Eventually, Amir Khan will fill up arenas in Las Vegas.

"Look at his skills, at the speed and combinations. Zab Judah didn't have a chance."

Zab Judah didn't given himself a chance.

For that, he would have had to fight.

Las Vegas Review-Journal sports columnist Ed Graney can be reached at egraney@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4618. He can be heard from 3 to 5 p.m. Monday and Thursday on "Monsters of the Midday," Fox Sports Radio 920 AM. Follow him on Twitter: @edgraney.