By Scott Gilfoid: #3 IBF 147 lb contender Carson Jones (34-8-2, 24 KO’s) plans on showing why he’s the higher ranked fighter tonight in his bout against Kell Brook (27-0, 18 KO’s) at the Motorpoint Arena, Sheffield, Yorkshire, UK.

It’s sad to say but this is really the first test for Brook unless you count Matthew Hatton and Rafal Jackiewicz as tests. I have an A to D grading system for fighters, and I don’t see Hatton or Jackiewicz as A or B level fighters. They’re C level in my view, and not any kind of test that compares to having them fight a good B level fighter like Jones or Randall Bailey.

Jones said “I feel great and I know I’ve got under his skin so let’s see what he’s got tomorrow. I’m ranked higher than him for a reason and everyone will see that in the ring.”

Brook is favored to win the fight by betting experts. However, that doesn’t mean a thing because they’re going on the limited knowledge that they have from Brook’s past fights, which have been soft mismatches. If we could have at least seen Brook in with one decent fighter in his eight year pro career it would be a lot easier to determine what he’s all about. But for me, I’ve seen enough from Brook’s performances against Hatton and Jackiewicz to tell me that he’s a step below Jones in talent, and huge step below guys like Manny Pacquiao, Andre Berto and Floyd Mayweather Jr. Brook will never real that level, because he doesn’t have the hand speed or the skills to match what they bring to the table.

When you look at Jones you have to ignore his record because it’s really misleading. If you look at it with those eight losses, you’ll think the guy is a lousy fighter. He’s not. Jones simply jumped into the pro game without a lot of amateur experience and he was matched tough at times against guys that he was really ready for. Jones has really improved in the last two years to the point where he’s in the top four in the division. Brook is going to have problems tonight especially with Jones’ right hands. He’s so strong, and he’s a lot better than Jackwiewicz or Hatton in my estimation.