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1. He got into boxing because he was a hyperactive child

Amir says he began boxing when he was very young. It wasn’t initially his choice, but something his father suggested to help him burn energy. “I was very hyperactive when I was young,” he says. “I would always misbehave at school, so my dad took me to the gym. It was probably one of the best things he ever did because it diverted my energy… It was just letting that anger out.” He quickly showed talent. He had an uncle who used to offer to buy him presents if he won his fights. “I think I literally bankrupted him because I was winning all the fights.”

Amir Khan and his wife of almost 10 years, Faryal Makhdoom.

2. His dad showed him what it means to be a man

Amir says his dad was a very stereotypically masculine man. “He owned his own scrap yard. He was always working… He had big muscles. Strong. He had a manly job.” He also credits his dad for showing him love by taking him to his boxing sessions several times a week. “He’d take me to the gym and even stand there and hold the [boxing] bag and be part of the coaching team… Three times a week, 7pm he’d take me to the gym… for two hours… then it’s half an hour there and back. Three hours he’s spending just with me. That’s a good dad.” Amir believes he too is a very good father. “I think I’m a better dad than their mum… I’m going to get beaten up for this.”

3. He thinks being a man means owning your mistakes

Amir’s been married to Faryal Makhdoom for almost 10 years. The couple have had what Rylan calls “ups and downs” in their marriage, including a temporary split in 2017. “As a man, I put my hand up for a lot of mistakes I’ve made,” says Amir. “I’ve been caught messing about. I’ve done a lot of silly things out there and I have to put my hand up and take full blame… I was at the peak of my career and I did a lot of things that weren’t really me.” He says huge fame made him behave in ways he doesn’t like. “That ego,” he says. “When you’re loved by that many people… you end up believing that.”

4. His outlook on fighting changed when he had kids

Amir retired from boxing last year, at the age of 35. His family were key in his choice to give it up. “I’m so glad I retired,” he says. “You can’t do it all your life. There’s always going to come a time you can’t take any more punches. When you start having kids you start thinking about them. You want to be in the right frame of mind for them. You want to be mentally right and physically right. Someone punches you in the wrong place and you could be paralysed… you could be killed. It’s a deadly sport.”

5. He used to disagree with women boxing

Rylan and Amir discuss boxing as a “manly” sport, so Rylan asks what Amir thinks of women boxing. Is that manly? Amir says, “I used to be a little bit against [women boxing]. 100%.” He says he didn’t like seeing women walking around with bruises because it would make him think, “maybe she’s been abused or beaten up – you feel sorry for the person.” He’s since changed his mind and now supports women boxing. “It’s given women a stance to show they’re as strong as men. It’s good to see that.”

6. He’s lasered off his chest hair

Amir and Rylan discuss what Amir sees when he looks in the mirror. He raises the subject of body hair. “All my life when I’ve been fighting I’ve always had a hairy chest, but I got it lasered recently.” He says he knows that’s “not masculine”. Rylan asks why he thinks that. “People say that to be a man you need to have hair on your chest… but I think it looks nice. More clean, more defined.” He also views it as an extension of how he treats his body as a Muslim. He says it’s part of the Muslim culture to keep most body hair to less than an inch long. “The Muslim religion is very clean. You have to be very clean, purified.”

7. He hates fights

He made his name fighting in the ring, but Amir hates any kind of confrontation outside of work. “I’m a tough guy in the ring, but I do become a bit soft at home,” he says. “I hate drama. I hate arguments. I hate fights. I’ve done that much in my life in the ring… I don’t want to do it no more.” He says it’s for that reason he’ll let his wife win most arguments. “I let her be the boss when she wants to.”

8. An armed robber made him question his masculinity

Earlier in 2023, Amir was robbed at gunpoint. “I remember walking out of a restaurant in East London and some guys push me to the car and push a gun right in my face,” he says. “I remember looking right in the barrel of the gun… Your whole life goes through your mind.” The robbers took his watch and then left. Amir says after the event he felt he hadn’t done enough to defend himself. “After it happened, people came over to me and said, ‘Are you all right?’ I felt like I’d let people down. I felt like I’d let myself down. People see me as a fighter.” But he realises he did the right thing. “I’m glad in a way I didn’t do anything. It only takes a second for him to pull that trigger and it’s game over.”

9. He doesn’t want his kids to box

Amir has two daughters and a son. Asked if he’d let them follow in his footsteps, he says, “I wouldn’t want my kids to box or fight. I want them to get an education and get normal jobs.” But he also says he wants his kids to experience everything. Asked what advice he’d give his son, he says, “Just believe in yourself and do what you think is right. If you make mistakes on the way, it’s fine. Don’t ever be that person who says, ‘I can’t do it. I’m not going to try it.’ Try everything in life. Go through it all. Experience it all. That’s the only way you’ll learn if it’s for you or not for you.”