Amir Khan was considered as the most likely opponent of Floyd Mayweather Jr. when he returns to the ring on May 3rd at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, but Marcos Maidana is slowly getting stronger consideration in the past few days.

Since Mayweather asked his fans to vote on who to fight between Khan and Maidana, the name of the Argentine champion is increasingly mentioned in talks, saying that Mayweather is now leaning towards facing the fighter, who defeated his good friend Adrien Broner.

Jeff Mayweather, the uncle of the undefeated American, also revealed that the reigning pound-for-pound king is getting cold to the idea of facing Khan due to the negative feedback from fans.

"Originally, they were thinking Khan," Jeff Mayweather told MLive.com. "But with so much negative feedback, with the blogs and various things -- it seemed like every time you saw Amir Khan's name attached to it, it said he had no chance. I think if they go based on titles, and who brings something to the table, it's Maidana."

The elder Mayweather also added that Khan has not proved anything to merit a shot at the undefeated record of his nephew, adding that it could have been a different situation if the Bolton native has a world title to boot.

On the other hand, Maidana's stock is on an all-time high after scoring a huge upset victory over the then-undefeated Broner in their WBA welterweight title showdown in December.

"Amir Khan doesn't have a title and he hasn't done anything to deserve a shot," Jeff Mayweather pointed out. "People want to see Floyd against the guy who beat Adrien Broner. They want to compare the imitator against the genuine one. Realistically, that's what he (Broner) is, an imitator of the legitimate thing."

However, one possible hurdle for the possible Mayweather vs. Maidana fight is the looming Maidana-Broner rematch, which was originally scheduled on April 19 or 26 in San Antonio or California.

Broner turned down the proposed date, but Broner is expected to insist for the rematch as he is aching to get back at his tormentor after the humiliating loss he absorbed in their thrilling showdown.