Last Saturday night at Manchester Arena in a bout that was broadcast on ESPN+, former boxing world champions Amir Khan and Kell Brook squared off in a long overdue British showdown.
The rivalry had been brewing outside of the ring for years, and it finally happened, albeit much later than most would have preferred. Better late than ever.
Going into this one both boxers were clearly past their best fighting days. Brook reached his prime fighting form between 2014 and 2016 at welterweight, and Khan was at his absolute best at 140 between 2009 and 2011. In that sense, Khan was further removed from his peak form on two fronts, size and time. Khan’s peak was more than 10 years ago and his best fighting weight was 140 pounds, whereas Brook’s prime was far more recent, and Brook’s prime fighting weight was 147 pounds. While there were still big questions and unsettled business in the build up, the key dynamics seemingly factored into how this particular clash of styles played out.
Khan needed to get off to a fast start in this one, and that didn’t happen. Instead Khan struggled to find attack angles to utilize his speed advantage, which was less pronounced than I expected. Brook was patiently stalking and studiously gauging, and he nailed Khan good with about a minute left in the opening round. Khan was wobbly and he appeared buzzed, but he survived the follow-up. That big punch effectively set the tone for the rest of the fight. Khan battled bravely, but he was unable to earn Kell’s respect, and Khan was frequently off balance and not particularly sharp. Brook was very methodical and very efficient in his approach, and by round 5, try as he might, Khan was providing very little resistance. This trend continued into the following round until the referee mercifully called a halt to the action early in round 6.
This edition of Rummy’s Corner will provide a quick recap of Brook’s victory against Khan, with some speculation about their futures in boxing.