By: Hans Themistode
For years on end, Kell Brook and Amir Khan appeared to be on a collision course. With the two stars hailing from the United Kingdom, having enormous fanbases, and winning world titles at one point in their respective primes, the boxing world urged them to face each other in the ring.
Yet, despite the constant pleas, neither side was successful in its efforts to make their contest a reality. Although both fighters will finally step through the ropes against one another on February 19th, in Manchester Arena in the United Kingdom, neither fighter is considered to be at their physical best any longer.
All along, Brook pointed a blaming finger in the direction of Khan. He verbally chastised Khan while making claims that the former Olympic silver medalist wanted no parts of fighting him. As their showdown inches closer and closer, Khan admits that it was in his personal best interest to face a much more diminished version of Brook, rather than the one who was once considered one of the best welterweights in the world.
“100% it’s a business, it is what it is,” said Khan recently during a virtual presser. “Why not? He’s still Kell Brook, he still talks the same, he still feels the same way about fighting me and he still feels that he can beat me. I just don’t think he has it in him. He’s not the same Kell Brook he was before. A couple years ago, he would’ve given me a harder fight for sure. But now, he doesn’t have a chance. It’s probably better fighting him now because he’s already half-broken.”
At one point, Brook had effectively worked his way up from relative obscurity to an elite-level fighter. In 2014, after spending the vast majority of his career in England, Brook traveled halfway across the world to America to challenge then IBF welterweight belt holder Shawn Porter. Though he was pegged as a sizable underdog, Brook boxed well on the night, producing his best results, a 12 round majority decision win.
Brook would then go on to defend his newly won trinket three times before ultimately suffering back-to-back defeats at the hands of Gennadiy Golovkin and Errol Spence Jr., the latter resulted in the loss of his welterweight title.
Since those aforementioned defeats, Brook has grown inactive and no longer appears to be in his fighting prime. The 35-year-old was last seen in the ring against Terence Crawford in November of 2020, losing via fourth-round stoppage.
While Khan, 35, is no longer considered to be at his physical best as well, the former unified 140 pound titlist believes he has much more left in the tank.
Although their long-awaited showdown is now just a few weeks away, Khan simply can’t wrap his head around the thought of defeat to his rival. Considering the wear and tear that Brook has endured, including suffering two broken orbital bones, Khan readily admits that before the injuries and age caught up to him, Brook was a much more difficult opponent to deal with.
However, should Khan pick up the victory against a more diminished version of Brook, he believes history won’t frown upon when they fought. Instead, it’ll only add to his legacy.
“Beating a Kell Brook now or beating him five years ago, I don’t think it makes a difference. When people read on my resume that I fought Kell Brook, they aren’t going to look what year that was so I don’t think that matters now.”
