Amir Khan has never done dull and he produced a typical action-packed display in beating Samuel Vargas to announce his return to the big time.
Khan showed all his old speed and power as he twice put Vargas down on his way to a unanimous points win.
But the former unified light-welterweight champ also displayed his old vulnerabilities as he was floored in the second round of this rollercoaster of a clash.
His defence was non-existent at times and he looked like he was just one punch away from being knocked out as he tired in the second half of the fight at Arena Birmingham.
Yet this edge-of-the-seat stuff is why fight fans love Khan and he delivers entertainment, even if trainer Joe Goossen’s blood pressure will need checking after this.
Khan won 119-108, 119-109, 118-110 on the judges’ scorecards and his reward will be a box office clash possibly against former gym-mate Manny Pacquiao or bitter rival Kell Brook.
Khan, 31, who has improved to 33-4-0, was too slick for Vargas in his first fight at welterweight in three years and caught the Colombian with a quick-fire combination towards the end of the opening round.
Vargas smiled, pretending he was not hurt. He might not have been, but he had had a taste of Khan’s speed and power.
Khan jumped on Vargas at the start of the second round and floored him with a left hook and booming straight right hand.
It was first blood to Khan literally and some claret trickled down Vargas’ nose.
Yet, even though Khan was in control, he went to sleep for a spit second to allow Vargas to knock him onto the seat of his pants with a big overhand right at the end of the round.
Khan put Vargas down again in the third with a right to the back of the Colombian’s head. Vargas rightly protested, but referee Terry O’Connor still gave him an eight count.
Khan continued to outland Vargas in the fourth with his quicker hands, but he still took too many shots.
Khan appeared to break Vargas’ nose with a blizzard of right and left hooks in the fifth and showed good shot selection when he stepped into the pocket to unload some hooks to the body and uppercuts.
The battered South American managed to keep going and Khan began to tire because he had not been this deep in a fight since Chris Algieri in May 2015.
Vargas hurt Khan and clipped him with a right hand at the end of the 10th, which almost turned the Bolton fighter’s legs to spaghetti.
Khan recovered and will now go on to bigger and more lucrative things.
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