Boxing stars pays tribute to the late late Sir Henry Cooper

Tributes are continuing to pour in for the late Sir Henry Cooper, 76, who died yesterday after a prolonged illness. Former three-time world champion Muhammad Ali has revealed his shock at his friends death as he was never told that the former British, Commonwealth and European heavyweight champion was ill.

"I am at a loss for words over the death of my friend, Henry Cooper," said Ali in a statement on Sunday night.

“I was not aware he was ill. I visited with him two summers ago during a brief visit to Windsor as part of the Equestrian Games being held there.

“He was in good humour and looked quite fit. Henry always had a smile for me; a warm and embracing smile. It was always a pleasure being in Henry's company. I will miss my ole friend. He was a great fighter and a gentleman."

Top Rank boss Bob Arum has also paid tribute to the man, who in 1963, almost became the first man to beat the great Ali.

"Henry was a real gent and that was apparent from first to last when we dealt with him in London when Ali fought there against him for the first time."

"There was something special about him as a personality and of course, he belonged to a different age. He was a gracious man. He carried himself with dignity at all times. Later, he became an elder statesman and was one of the good guys in boxing. He will be sadly missed. I know Ali enjoyed seeing him in Windsor two years ago when Ali visited. A legend has gone. He won't be forgotten.”

On British shores, current world champions David Haye and Amir Khan has expressed their sorrow on the loss of what of the UK’s great characters of the game.

"He was at all the charity dinners and what-not and we'd talk to each other and he'd give me advice and wish me luck, give me his opinion on what he thought I should do and it was always sound advice.

"He'd let you know his opinion - whether you wanted to hear it or not! - and I believe the advice he's given me over the years is working out because I'm now the heavyweight champion of the world."

Amir Khan said: "He had everything. I remember meeting him a few times and he came across very humble, we had a good conversation about my own career.

Khan vs Prescott 2?

There are ongoing negotiations for Khan to face WBC/WBO champion Timothy Bradley, but that fight appears to be on the brink of falling through, and Golden Boy Promotions are already of lining up alternative options. In 2008, Prescott knocked Khan out in 54-seconds of the first round.

"I'm ready to let you clean up the mess I made of you in England. Now it is time to take that thorn out of your side - but I'm going to take it out and put it in your heart and finish your career for good. Amir Khan is a fraud," Prescott said.

Khan vs Bradley in Jeopardy?

Although it would unify three of the four major light welterweight world titles, the proposed unification bout between WBA champion Amir Khan and WBO/WBC champion Tim Bradley still appears to be in danger of falling apart.

According to several reports, Khan's team offered Bradley $1.5 million for a July showdown, which Bradley has since said that he is unhappy with.

Golden Boy's Richard Schaefer then said to Boxingscene that Bradley's promoter Lou DiBella has until next week to accept the deal before Khan looks for alternative July opponents.

Despite reports to the contrary, seemingly the main thing separating the champions at the moment remains the purse split.

Khan and his team believe he should have the bigger share due to the fact that he is by far the bigger draw.

Bradley and his team believe he should be getting more than he has been offered due to the fact that he is the two belt champion and is universally ranked as number one in the division.

So is either really at fault?

Numerous fighters who have dealt with team Khan have criticized the amount of money that they were offered.

Before Paul McCloskey was confirmed as Khan's last opponent both he and Lamont Peterson turned down initial offers from Khan. Marcos Maidana was also unhappy with what he was offered prior to their clash, and Paulie Malignaggi made roughly a tenth of what Khan did for their bout last year.

In the end though, Khan's team have generally upped the offers they made to most opponents who initially turned them down, and bouts with Maidana and McCloskey shows that they are able to be negotiated with.

So ordinarily Bradley might have had a case for having been low-balled. If not for the fact that the amount Khan offered him was $1.3 million,a career high purse for Bradley and more than he could make against anyone else in the division.

Its no secret that Bradley has never been a big draw even in his hometown and regardless of what he achieves in the ring that doesn't look like changing anytime soon.

The numbers he put up on HBO against fellow unbeaten champion Devon Alexander were less than impressive, as was the fight itself mainly due to the clash of styles.

Also Bradley's style, while unquestionably effective, isn't often pleasing on the eye as he grinds down opponents and tends to get very few knockouts.

Then there is the headbutting issue.

His bout against Devon Alexander was ended in the tenth after a clash of heads. Previous bouts against Luis Abregu, Lamont Peterson, Nate Campbell, Kendall Holt and Ednar Cherry were all affected by head clashes.

The fact that Bradley's head has so often affected the outcome of his fights, not that it it necessarily his own fault, has undoubtedly turned numerous fans off.

Aside from the purse split itself, there is also the fact that Khan and Bradley have both had troubles with television networks of late.

Khan split from Sky Sports last month after the cable giant denied he and McCloskey's bout pay per view status. Sky then said that they weren't interested in airing Khan vs. Bradley, leaving Khan without a major network showing his fights in the U.K where the majority of his fan base is located.

HBO meanwhile can't be too keen on shelling out big money for Bradley again after his fight with Devon Alexander.

Khan is an exciting fighter whose style appeals to even casual fans but then again so was Alexander, and Bradley turned that fight into an ugly war of attrition.

Clearly though both fighters want the fight to happen. Both Bradley and Khan are eager to unify light welterweight and move up to welterweight where bigger purses and more prestigious fights against the likes of Manny Pacquiao or Floyd Mayweather await.

The difference here is that Khan is the one with the alternative options. His drawing power means that he is an attractive option for any fighter to take on, and being represented by Golden Boy he also has the connections to progress faster than Bradley and if he has a mind to even jump up in weight immediately.