Speed vs. power: George Foreman sees Amir Khan's quickness giving him a shot against Canelo Alvarez

LAS VEGAS- Boxing has always intrigued its viewers with championship matches pitting speed against power.

Leading up to the showdown between Amir Khan and WBC middleweight champion Saul "Canelo" Alvarez at the new T-Mobile Arena on Saturday (HBO pay-per-view, 9 p.m. ET), we look at some of the most memorable speed-vs.-power matchups to put the highly anticipated main event in context.

In the modern era, perhaps none captured the imagination of boxing fans more than Muhammad Ali vs. George Foreman in the "Rumble in the Jungle" in Zaire in 1974.

Ali, at the time the most famous person on the planet, came in as the underdog to powerful, undefeated heavyweight champ Foreman, a knockout machine who packed such a devastating punch that many of Ali's fans were concerned that their hero might be killed or severely injured by Foreman.

"I depended solely on my power, and I thought I could beat up the world," Foreman told Paste BN Sports. "But when those punches start coming just beyond your catching ability, or being able to duck, it changes everything."

Foreman, who was 40-0 with 37 knockouts at the time, said people were concerned for Ali's health and welfare as the fight neared.

"I'm telling you, they had me believing it, too," Foreman said. "People would walk up to me … and say, 'Please stop saying you're going to kill Ali.' I'd say, 'OK, I'll do him a favor. I'm not going to kill him, I'll just beat him real bad.' That's how confident I was."

But Ali had tricks up his sleeve. He had such quick hands and feet that he could connect against Foreman almost at will, then he employed his famous "rope-a-dope" strategy for the first time and ultimately knocked out Foreman in the eighth round in one of the greatest upsets of all time.

"I was dumb, and he'd lay on the ropes, and I punched myself out," Foreman said. "But it was his speed of hand. Whenever he would throw them, before I could put my head back in position, he would hit me. Where other guys would hit me, but I'd hit them faster, (Ali) had the hand speed. The right hand he hit me with I never saw coming."

Foreman said he also made the mistake of watching film of Joe Frazier and Ken Norton defeating Ali and Henry Cooper knocking him down years earlier and thought that if they could do it, he surely could with his power.

It turned out to be the worst defeat of Foreman's career.

Referee Zack Clayton, right, steps in after Muhammad Ali knocks down defending heavyweight champion George Foreman in the eighth round of their championship bout in Kinshasa, Zaire. (AP photo)

Thirteen years later, another classic speed-vs.-power matchup took place when Sugar Ray Leonard came out of retirement to fight feared middleweight champion Marvin Hagler. Few gave Leonard, one of America's greatest fighters in his prime, a chance.

"It was impossible," Foreman said. "But (Leonard) outboxed this guy and did so many fast things to Marvin Hagler, I don't think Hagler has gotten over it yet. I wouldn't. The worst thing for Hagler was totally depending on his power, because he knew Leonard couldn't take his shots."

In a match where power overcame speed, Golden Boy founder and CEO Oscar De La Hoya looks at Julio Cesar Chavez against Meldrick Taylor in 1990, two years before De La Hoya would win the gold Medal in boxing for the USA.

"Taylor, with the speed, was beating Chavez every single round, every single minute, but at the same times he was taking a lot of punishment," De La Hoya said. "In the 12th round guess what happens? Chávez knocks him out with two seconds left and wins the fight."

Foreman believes Khan (31-3, 19 KOs) has a real chance to win a decision against Canelo because of his speed and his penchant for throwing body shots.

"I saw a lot of guys that had the speed but didn't have the experience and durability, and that's what Canelo is up against this time," Foreman said.

Sugar Ray Leonard (left) and Marvin Hagler fight during their April 6, 1987 WBC/IBF middleweight championship bout. (AP photo)

"In speed vs. power, you always look for the (speed) guy to land some body punches and pull out the decision in 12 rounds. And that's what I'm looking for, if Khan doesn't try to get into a slugfest with Canelo. He can pull it out if he stays away from exchanges."

Khan said Tuesday that his skills, speed and experience put him way ahead of Canelo, "and that's why I really believe I can win this fight," he said.

The Pakistani boxer from Bolton, England, an Olympic silver medalist, has never fought above 147 pounds but will be 155 for this fight. He thinks his explosiveness and speed will translate at the higher weight. "You either have it or you don't," he said.

Canelo's only loss came against ultra-quick Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2013. But he says he's a much different fighter now than he was then.

"(I have more) experience, obviously I'm more mature, but it's not just that fight," he said. "Every fight you learn something new and every fight you take that confidence into the next fight."

Canelo (46-1-1, 32 KOs) said he hasn't thought much about speed winning out in many of the great speed vs. power matchups in boxing's past.

"This is a different fight," Canelo said. "A lot of people (think of) my style as power, but once they're in the ring with me, they realize I'm very fast, too."

De La Hoya, the CEO and founder of Golden Boy Promotions, which handles Canelo and once had Khan in its stable, likes speed over power. But he warns not to overlook Canelo's own quickness.

"As Amir Khan has said, speed kills. I would rather have speed than power," De La Hoya said. "Because with power, if I don't catch my guy because he's moving around too fast, guess what? I'm going to lose on points.

"But one thing about Canelo: At 25, he's getting faster.

"He's going to be dangerous."

(Photo of Oscar De La Hoya, center, flanked by Alvarez, left, and Khan, by Damian Dovarganes, AP)