Amir Khan v Kell Brook - Finally

[Master]

This is why I think Brook will win because he was in shape as recent as November when he faced Crawford.

Khan has essentially been semi-retired since Canelo knocked him out and he will not get in shape, no matter how great he thinks his training camp has been.

My only concern was the way Brook folded so easily against Crawford, he normally has more resilience as he showed against Golovkin and Spence. Khan is not a huge puncher but his fast hands and footwork will cause problems until he gets caught by Brook.

They genuinely do not like one another and they are both at the ends of their career so this could make it a good contest.

[Mark TKO]

I hope it does go that way - on a free to view stream

[Master]

HAD IT ALL Amir Khan vs Marcos Maidana one of the greatest fights Joe Cortez ever refereed – and he’s been in with Mike Tyson, Roberto Duran and Manny Pacquiao

Esteemed referee Joe Cortez believes Amir Khan’s victory against Marcos Maidana ‘was one of the most outstanding, skilful and exciting’ fights he saw in a 60-year career.

The 2004 Olympian returns to the ring this weekend in Manchester to face bitter rival Kell Brook in a fight neither man can afford to lose, live on talkSPORT.

Khan has seen and done it all across a career which began as a professional in 2005 and Saturday’s main event will be the 40th time he makes the walk to the ring.

Perhaps the only thing which has evaded Khan is a genuine domestic grudge match, although that will be settled one and for all when he is locked in with Brook at the AO Arena.

Cortez can pay testament to the skill level and ability of the 35-year-old, having witnessed him defend his WBA light-welterweight title at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas in 2010.

Despite having officiated fights featuring Mike Tyson, Roberto Duran and Manny Pacquaio, the International Boxing Hall of Fame alumni had incredibly high praise for this particular contest.

Cortez told ESPN in 2018: “During my 60 years linked to the sport of boxing, I have seen and refereed many great fights, but if I had to pick the top 20 championship fights that I refereed, I would say the Khan-Maidana bout in 2010 was one of the most outstanding, skilful and exciting. Lots of heart, blood, sweat and tears. That fight had it all.

It really did, with Khan flooring his opponent with a shot to the liver in the first round.

“You have to take into consideration that in 2010, both Maidana and Khan were in the prime of their careers. They were both outstanding, had great stamina, great reach, great reflexes, great punching power. It was really outstanding. Fans at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino were in for a treat.

“It was a fight that was very intense in some rounds, because both fighters were hurt in different occasions, especially in the first round, when Khan sent Maidana down with a left hook to the liver.

“I was surprised how Maidana was able to get off the canvas. It was a devastating punch that most fighters would have stayed down.”

The Argentine is one of the hardest punchers of his generation and fought back valiantly in the later rounds to stun the Brit badly.

Despite the back and forth battle, Cortez spoke highly of Khan and his powers of recovery, which are often overlooked with ‘King Khan’ too easily dismissed as ‘chinny’ by detractors.

Yet he showed great heart, skill and power to claim a unanimous decision win and deny ‘El Chino’ and his marauding blows.

Cortez added: “Khan is a great puncher and has great speed. In most cases, when a fighter has punching power, they don’t have great speed. Amir has both, just like Mike Tyson, who had great speed and great punching power.

“Maidana, with his experience and determination, got up from the canvas when he was in danger and continued the rest of the fight like a real champion.

“As Maidana was rocked in the first round, Khan was to get his fair share of huge blows. In the sixth round, Maidana proved it.

“I always knew that Khan had a questionable chin, and he got hit hard. He has always been able to weather the storm, with the exception of when he got KO’d by Breidis Prescott a couple of years back.

“But he always seems to get out of those dangers when he’s hurt, and he has great experience and great footwork, plus him being a masterful resourceful fighter, Khan was able to weave and backtrack to be able to survive, and he did that very well. I was surprised how he was able to stay on his feet.

“When you see a fighter that is a little bit hurt, you throw punches from all angles, as was the case with Maidana. Of course, the duty of the referee is to enforce the rules, so when I saw Khan got hit behind the head on several occasions, I knew they weren’t intentional. It was in desperation to try to put away Khan, and he would try to start throwing punches to those dangerous areas where you hit punches behind the head.

“Had he put Khan down with those punches around the head, I would have had to determine if it was caused by Khan turning his head trying to get away from those punches or was it an intentional punch. Thank god it was not intentional, so therefore, it made it a lot easier for me to handle. Had Amir gone down because of that punch, I would have taken a different action depending on how severe the blow to the head was.

“I think Amir pulled it out, it was a back-and-forth mano-a-mano match. The 12th was a hard round to score. I don’t think that all three judges had it the same in the last round, because it was that kind of a fight, and it was an outstanding performance by both fighters.

“The scores of 114-111 twice and 113-112 were right on the spot.”

The fight was called one of the ‘fights of the decade’ by Oscar De La Hoya and the Boxing Writers Association of America awarded it Fight of the Year.

Let’s hope for a banger on Saturday night.

https://talksport.com/sport/boxing/1...anny-pacquiao/

[Master]

AMIR KHAN and Kell Brook’s bitter pay-per-view grudge match is being sweetened by some tasty undercard bouts.

Underrated and understated Germaine Brown gets a crack at the English super-middleweight title as he continues to go about his hurt business quietly but impressively against champ Charlie Schofield.

Tokyo 2020 bronze winner Frazer Clarke makes his heavyweight debut against a TBC opponent, as he aims to follow in the footsteps of Team GB giants Anthony Johsua and Joe Joyce by grabbing an Olympic and becoming a pro star.

At 30-years-old already, with a long and impressive amateur record and thousands of rounds sparring AJ in the bank, Clarke will be fastracked by Boxxer and Sky Sports toward major fights.

Viddal Riley - the cruiserweight who found fame by coaching internet sensation KSI for his celebrity boxing bouts - looks to improve on his record with a bout against journeyman Willbeforce Shihepo.

Brilliant brothers Adam (lightweight) and Hassan (welter) Azim will feature against lesser foes as they continue to show improvements out of Shane McGuigan’s fine young stable.

And Abdul Khan, cousin of Bolton’s favourite headliner, gets to open the show for his favourite relative and manager.

After failed world title bids at super-feather and lightweight, Liverpool queen Natasha Jonas jumps up to super-welterweight to get a crack at the WBO world title against Chris Namus.

The 37-year-old mother has suffered harsh decisions in her two most high profile bouts - against Terri Harper and Katie Taylor - so will be desperate to finally grab a world honour.

At middleweight 23-year-old Brad Rea targets 12-0 in a 50-50 battle with Ireland’s Craig McCarthy.

And finally, Manchester boxing legend Ricky Hatton will make an appearance at his local arena in the corner of his charge Ibrahim Nadim.

Amir Khan vs Kell Brook (catchweight 149lbs)
Natasha Jonas vs Chris Namus (WBO world super welterweight title)
Charlie Schofield vs Germaine Brown(English super middleweight title)
Bradley Rea vs Craig McCarthy (Middleweight)
Frazer Clarke vs TBA (Heavyweight)
Viddal Riley vs Willbeforce Shihepo (Cruiserweight)
Adam Azim vs Jordan Ellison (Lightweight)
Hassan Azim vs MJ Hall (Welterweight)
Abdul Khan vs Ricky Starkey (Lightweight)
Ibrahim Nadim vs Taka Bembere (Super featherweight)

https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/17660...d-fight-times/

[Master]

[Master]

Kell Brook has insisted that he can knock out Amir Khan after mastering the weight cut that looms later this week.

Before Khan and Brook settle their score in Manchester on Saturday night, live on Sky Sports Box Office, they must navigate Friday's weigh-in where the limit is 149lbs.

A six-figure fine is in place for every pound above the limit that either man may weigh.

Khan vs Brook: How to bookBook the fight onlineNon-Sky subscribers: Book here
But Brook, who notoriously battled with the scales to make 147lbs as the world welterweight champion, warned Khan: "He has made a big mistake by [delaying me] for seven months.

"Unfortunately for him, I was training.

"I could have made the weight three or four weeks ago.

"I am very comfortable. I am happy. I'm not putting a poker face on.

"I have done the hard work. I was away from my family at Christmas."

Brook was booed at Wednesday's public work-outs but said: "I truly believe that I end this fight by knockout.

"I won't go out and be stupid by looking for the knockout.

"But if I am 100 percent, which I am, then the shot will come.

"I believe it will happen at some point in the fight."

Khan received a hero's welcome and said: "I've never trained so hard. I never had an easy day.

"Having Terence Crawford here is massive motivation. He is the best fighter in the world - he fought me and Kell - and his advice has been brilliant.

"I will win this fight in good style.

"Kell doesn't have a chance - it is the best Amir that is coming on Saturday."

Undefeated WBO champion Crawford, who welcomed Khan into his US training camp to ready himself for Brook, said about their brutal preparations: "I call it Hell in a Cell! If you get through camp, you can do anything.

"The fight is the fun part.

"But you win the fight in the gym. You prepare yourself for whatever may come in the gym.

"Everybody wants to see these two get in the ring to settle their differences.

"It didn't happen back then, but it will happen now.

"A lot is riding on it.

"Brook is very talented. He still has a lot left in the tank. But I give the edge to Khan because I witnessed how hard he trained, how he sparred, how he progressed and I see the hunger in his eyes."

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/sport/boxi...cid=entnewsntp

[Master]

Amir Khan: Former world champion not considering retirement after Kell Brook fight

Amir Khan says he has no intention of retiring from boxing if he loses his upcoming bout with long-time rival Kell Brook.

The British duo fight each other in Manchester on Saturday at a 147lbs catchweight after a near 20-year feud.

But Khan, 35, is not thinking about quitting as he told BBC Breakfast: "After Sunday? Career still going strong. I'm still fighting.

"I feel better at 35 than I was at 25, believe it or not."

Khan added: "I feel so strong, so fresh. I've got that love back for the sport again.

"Training with the new team in Nebraska, they've brought the love back for me. I'm really excited to see what the future holds."

Brook is also 35 and, like Khan, a former world champion and last fought in November 2020 when he lost to Terence Crawford for the WBO welterweight title.

Despite both men being past their prime, the Manchester Arena sold out in less than 10 minutes, such is the demand for the grudge match.

"It shows how much impact this fight has and the demand - people want to see this fight," Khan said of the ticket sales.

"We don't like each other, everyone sees that. I cannot lose against someone like Kell Brook.

"It would be very upsetting in my career if I lost to Kell Brook. That's why going into this fight we had to be 100% ready and we have to beat this guy in good fashion."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/boxing/60395628