Former world champion Amir Khan has denied recent claims that he was put down and knocked unconscious during a sparring sessions with Manny Pacquiao.

During a recent interview, Irish welterweight Dean Byrne claimed that he was informed of stories that Khan was knocked cold by Pacquiao during a sparring session.

"I didn't see it myself," Byrne said to Sky Sports. "Khan was all over the place on many occasions and everybody at the gym knows it. I heard stories that he was asleep on the floor. I have heard that.

"Khan's chin is just like that. He is a great fighter, a great athlete, a super boxer, his hand speed is so fast. But his chin? He hasn't got a good chin. You can't put muscles on your chin. Freddie wanted him to get in, get out, get in, get out. But Khan stays in the pocket for too long to please the crowd, then he comes unstuck because of his chin."

Byrne had trained at Freddie Roach's Wild Card Boxing Club, located in Los Angeles, California.

And Roach used him as a key player in Manny Pacquiao's training camps for important pay-per-view fights.

He was used as a sparring partner for three of Pacquiao's fights with Juan Manuel Marquez, and the breakout clash with Oscar De La Hoya.

During the period when Byrne made his bones at the Wild Card, Roach started training a once-beaten British star in Amir Khan, who was looking to rebuild his career after being blown away by Breidis Prescott in one round.

Roach also used Byrne as a sparring partner for Khan.

Roach would often have Pacquiao and Khan spar in camp - as they usually had fights coming up in close proximity on the schedule.

In numerous interviews, Roach revealed that Pacquiao had often decked Khan and even knocked him out in sparring.

Khan, who eventually parted ways with Roach in 2012, completely denies that he was knocked down by Pacquiao or anyone else in sparring.

“I’ve been seeing reports that I was put down by Manny Pacquiao in sparring - which is not true. I have never been put down by Manny Pacquiao.  We have had some great sparring sessions. I always look back at the times I had at the Wild Card Boxing Gym in Los Angeles. Manny was a great fighter and still is a great fighter," Khan said in a video statement issued to BoxingScene.com.

“We must have done 300 or 400 rounds of sparring in total - and never was I ever put down by him or hurt by him in any way. We had some great sparring sessions. He's a southpaw, I'm an orthodox fighter. And Freddie Roach was there as well. With all of these comments people are making that I was put down, they are not true.

“I was never put to sleep or put down by Manny Pacquiao, which is quite ridiculous with some of the comments I’ve been reading. Look, no disrespect to Manny, he's a great fighter, we had some very competitive sparring sessions - toe to toe we were. He would catch me with good shots and I would catch him with good shots.

"I have to thank Manny because he helped me get my confidence back. When I lost to Breidis Prescott in the UK, I then moved over to the Wild Card and Manny was one of the guys who helped me get my confidence back. It was just amazing to be in the ring with such a great legend at that time. At that time he was getting ready to fight Oscar De La Hoya.

"To be honest with you, I've been put down in fights but I've never been put down in sparring by anyone. In sparring I've never been put down. You can ask all the guys I've sparred with or ask Freddie Roach and other trainers who were there. It's just funny when you see people making comments and making stuff up.”