'I'll switch to MMA to fight Conor McGregor' says Amir Khan - but could it really happen?

McGregor lost his unbeaten record earlier this year when he was comprehensively thumped by Nate Diaz at UFC 196 in March.

But the Irishman remains perhaps the biggest draw in fighting sports, and a big money match against Floyd Mayweather Jr has been seriously suggested in recent months - a bout which would probably smash records for Pay-Per-View income.

Khan, however, claims that Mayweather would never dream of stepping into either a ring or an octagon against McGregor.

But the Bolton fighter claims he is up for it himself - in contrast to his former training partner Mayweather.

"I don't think Mayweather would ever take it. When Mayweather knows he's in a real fight, he just backs out of it," Khan told Flocombat.

"I would definitely give it a go. It just depends on the weight category.

"But look, as a fighter, that's a fight I would take."

Indeed he would: not only would it be his biggest-ever payday, but Khan's career has almost certainly hit the glass ceiling anyway.

The 29-year-old was knocked out by Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez in May, his third defeat in his last eight fights.

But that in itself showed his bravery: he had stepped up two weight divisions to take the Alvarez bout, and claims that his profile is still just about high enough to land MMA's biggest fish.

"McGregor is a massive name in MMA, and I'm a big name in boxing, so globally, I think it would be a massive fight," Khan added.

"Sometimes, you have to put friendship aside and you have to take it in the cage or in the ring.

"But yeah, if that fight comes up to me, I'm not one to back away from it."

It seems far-fetched, but Khan is insistent that he could make the switch.

"Something like that would be massive. Even if I started to train MMA next year, I'd only be 30 years old," said the 2004 Olympic silver medallist.

"I could stop and train for a full year and become a good MMA fighter. It's in our blood to fight.

"I've been fighting all my life, so for me, I don't think it'd be a problem for me to learn and switch over to the sport...

"A good boxer will always win a MMA fight - I've always said that. A good puncher will always win...

"With boxing, it's all about distance and timing, and that's something we have on our side more than MMA fighters."