By Scott Gilfoid: IBF welterweight champion Kell Brook (33-0, 22 KOs) believes he should have the upper hand in the Amir Khan negotiations next year if/when negotiations start.
Speaking with IFL TV about who calls the shots in the negotiations between him and Khan, Brook said “I’m the champion of the world. He’s not the champion. When he moves up to this level, he gets knocked out. I’m the governor. I’m the champion. I’m the man.”
As you can see, Brook got his feathers ruffled over the question of who calls the shots in the negotiation. But I’m not really sure Brook’s IBF title is that big of a deal. I mean, just because Brook captured a world title against Shawn Porter by using a lot of holding and such for 12 rounds without the referee disqualifying him for it, that doesn’t translate to instant popularity.
The performance from Brook was hardly what you could characterize as an impressive one, unless you think constant clinching is interesting to watch. Porter looked bad as well, but he’s not the one that is talking about wanting to fight Khan next.
Brook won the fight last Saturday night over Brook, but it was such an awful performance from both guys that Brook didn’t really gain much. If he had gone out and obliterated Porter, then yeah, I can see how he could strut like a peacock and say he’s the man. But that’s not what happened last Saturday. I personally had Porter winning the fight 11 rounds to 1. I couldn’t give rounds to Brook because he was getting nailed constantly with shots and holding frequently each time Porter would get near him.
There’s no way of knowing who the top guy is, but I have a feeling that Khan is still the A-side fighter in a fight against Brook. Can Brook become the A-side guy? Yeah, but it’s going to require for him to step up a level and face Keith Thurman on December 6th and beat him.
If Brook beats Thurman, then he definitely should be the guy that calls the shots in a Khan fight. But that’s not going to happen because Brook’s promoter Eddie Hearn is saying that only hardcore boxing fans know who Thurman is. Hearn is more interested in Josesito Lopez, Andre Berto, Brandon Rios and Roberto Guerrero. In other words, he’s interested in guys that have already beaten a number of times and beatable.
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