By: Hans Themistode
Amir Khan simply looked down on Kell Brook. He has been for many years. With the match officially ending on February 19, at Manchester Arena in the UK, Khan is nervously checking the hourglass as their duel draws closer.
While Khan has openly admitted to hating his opponents, he acknowledges his overall skill. In fact, with their contest about a week away, Khan believes his confrontation with Brook is almost like fighting a slightly lower version of himself.
“We have a very similar style,” Khan told a group of reporters. “Sometimes he’s very explosive but I don’t think he has the same speed as me or the speed I have.”
Brook, 35, used his previously mentioned speed and strength, as well as his overall skills and endurance, to claim the IBF weightlifting title against Shawn Porter in 2014. During his nearly three-year championship reign, Brook would go on to defend his title a total of three times. Since then, however, Brook has suffered crushing defeats at the hands of Errol Spence Jr., Gennadiy Golovkin and most recently Terence Crawford.
In matches with Golovkin and Spence Jr., Brook displayed a big heart and an iron chin before succumbing to their relentless onslaught. However, in Brook’s bout against Crawford, the British weight star stunned the British product with a stab in the fourth round. From there, Crawford unleashed a number of unanswered blows before referee Tony Weeks was forced to stop their contest.
Khan, of course, watched closely as he watched Brook meet his untimely death. At one point, Khan considered Brook to be someone with a high tolerance threshold. However, at this point in his career, Khan doubts that the trauma Brook has endured throughout his career has caught up with him.
“Honestly, I don’t think Kell has a nice chin or can take a good shot. I think his punch resistance is gone, literally.”
