By: Hans Themistode
During their professional career, both Amir Khan and Kell Brook forged championship careers in the sport of boxing. With both men proudly placing the British world on their backs, a duel between them began to arise almost a decade ago.
However, despite spending many years near the top of the boxing mountain, a duel between them never materialized. That is, until now.
At the age of 35 and no longer in their respective primes, Khan and Brook filled Manchester Stadium in the United Kingdom for their highlight event.
To kick things off, Khan tiptoed up and down and patiently waited for the opening bell to ring. When it did, he immediately grabbed the center of the ring and found Brook’s chin with a well-timed stab. Unaffected by the shot, Brook put his hands overhead and began to bring his man down.
Khan closed the crate and moved outside and avoided the arms that were constantly directed at him. As Khan appeared to be on his way to the encirclement, Brook landed with an eye-catching left hand, leaving Khan standing on wobbly legs. While Khan will survive the round, Brook will continue to punish him throughout their contest.
In the second half, Brook came out strong. He put constant pressure on Khan. Despite appearing uncomfortable at times, Khan held his ground during the second half of that second period. The former Olympic silver medalist found moments of success in the second half of the inning but it quickly disappeared in the third.
A powerful double strike to start the round sent Khan into a tied position. A Khan shrugged and laughed and continued to fight back legs. As Brook continued to maintain his relentless pace, he sneered as he watched Khan languish under his relentless pressure.
When Khan came out to start the fifth inning, he looked tired but ready to keep fighting. In an attempt to keep Brook away from him, he decided against boxing and moved. Instead, he bit down on his mouthpiece and brazenly used fire to put out the fire.
Amused by Khan’s new game plan, Brook welcomed his longtime domestic rival into a back-and-forth fight. On several occasions during the round, Khan’s nearly lifeless body hit the ropes. At the end of the round, Brook cornered Khan and nearly pushed him over his head in a bullying tactic.
Moments later, Brook’s aggressive nature and malicious moves forced referee Victor Loughlin to step in and end the one-sided massacre.
With their rivalry officially behind them, both Khan and Brook hugged in the center of the ring with the UK crowd at Manchester Arena cheering in approval.
