With the media workouts, press conferences and weigh ins all out of the way, the only thing left now for Kell Brook and Errol Spence Jr is to resolve their differences inside the ring.
With a part bubbly, other times subdued atmosphere surrounding the fight build up it is still on a knife edge which way this fight could go.
We have seen different sides of the spectrum already with Matchroom fights this year. We saw David Haye and Tony Bellew go into a war of words that saw the bout itself put in questions and brought both fighters in front of boxings elders – not to mention that even a punch was thrown at a press conference, and then the complete opposite build up last month when Anthony Joshua came up against heavyweight veteran Wladimir Klitschko. The latter received praise from many corners, applauding the professionalism of the fighters, however did bear the brunt of other fan sections who claimed it ‘a boring snoozefest’.
With those events done and put to bed – at least for now – we turn to Kell Brook and Errol Spence, and even after all the pre match build up, the opinion coin is still very much spinning as to who will walk away with the belt on Saturday night.
Boxing purists are tending to lean towards the American challenger, who possesses an unblemished record and has displayed knock out power against fighters that some of the other, bigger names in his division couldn’t.
However, unsurprisingly, many of the power punchers are backing the powerful champion, the man who has overcome diversity and challenges time after time in his career, arching back to the night he actually claimed the belt. Against an undefeated young American fighter in Shawn Porter, Brook went to champions back garden as the underdog, and after a real 50/50 dual walked away with one of the closes decision victories you’re likely to see in a world title contest.
So with both fighters showing they have ability and form, where could you find a chink in the other’s armour?
Much has been made of the weight limit in this fight. Under the welterweight banner, the fighters must not come to the weigh in heavier than the 147 lb limit. After Brook’s last fight at middleweight (a division that carries a 160lb limit), many are questioning whether Brook can drop the required weight. The fighter himself has alluded to the fact it has been a struggle, but ultimately has met the limit.
The question could be asked on whether or not that will leave him drained, which it may well do. When a fighter loses so much weight in a short amount of time, their energy levels can be affected, their stamina and strength, features that in short are crucial to Brook’s Saturday night plan. But Spence is no small fighter either.
Errol Spence has long been tipped as a fighter who will eventually move up through the divisions. He too has had to cut weight to make this fight, so don’t expect weight to be an excuse rolled out after the fight, as both are aware at how much the other has had to achieve.
Is this the biggest test for either fighter? It most certainly is for Errol Spence Jr. Going back to the first press conference, a large part was the two coaches war of the words, where both rightly questioned their opponents records.
The highlights of Spence’s resumé consist of a knockout of Bundu, a fighter almost seen as a gateway to the division’s elite, and a Chris Algieri stoppage. Many have come and had tough nights with Bundu, however Spence knocked him out, becoming the first fighter to do so. Similarly with Algieri, who had previously been the distance with Britain’s Amir Khan and Filipino superstar Manny Pacquiao. Although Pacquiao floored Algieri numerous times he was never able to achieve the stoppage Spence did.
Brook’s record is similar in the sense of slim pickings on genuine elite fighters, although those he has come up against are amongst the highest of the world’s current crop.
A points victory against Shawn Porter saw Brook originally win the title in America, although that was followed by a large period of inactivity due to a vicious knife attack in which he was stabbed in the leg. Another hold up on the career of the Sheffield man was a continued pursuit of long term rival Amir Khan. The Bolton fighter often left Brook waiting as he sought bigger payday fights in the division.
Then came the biggest challenge Brook is ever likely to face, a step up to middleweight to take on one of the most feared men in boxing, Kazakh Gennady Golovkin.
Brook looked to be settling into the fight well after being rocked early on against the heavy favourite, but the bout was halted midway through, as Kell suffered a serious eye injury, and his first loss.
In taking an ‘L’ on his record, Brook now has, in some ways, less to lose. Should he lose he will of course relinquish his title, but he can challenge for titles again. Once you lose your ‘0’ it’s gone, so should Spence find himself comfortable going into the final, so called ‘championship rounds’, we could see him back off a little, looking to take no risks, in a way which will surely invite Brook onto him.
Overall, we learned that neither fighter fears who’s in front of him. We learned their coaches back their men completely. We learned both were able to shed much weight in acts of determination.
We learned it could still go either way.
