Golovkin's Trainer: Spence is Not Ready, Brook Will Beat Him

By Edward Chaykovsky

Abel Sanchez, trainer of IBF, WBC, IBO, WBA middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin, is backing IBF welterweight champion Kell Brook (36-1, 25 KOs) to defeat undefeated Olympian Errol Spence (21-0, 18 KOs) on May 27 in Sheffield.

Last September at the O2 Arena in London, Brook moved up by two full weight divisions to challenge Golovkin for his titles.

Brook had his moments in the contest and tested Golovkin's chin at times, but he wasn't able hold off the much bigger man. Golovkin fractured Brook's orbital bone and stopped him in the fifth round.

Now Brook is squeezing back down to 147 pounds to meet his mandatory defense obligation to Spence.

There is a lot of hype behind Spence and numerous experts are predicting that he does a real job on Brook. Dominic Ingle, who trains Brook, feels Spence is a bit overhyped and his record is lacking credible opponents. Last year, Spence picked up one-sided knockouts win over former world champion Chris Algieri and Italian Olympian Leonard Bundu.

Sanchez agrees with Ingle's position, because the veteran coach believes Spence does not possess enough ring experience, or faced enough top level opponents, to beat someone like Brook at this stage in his career. He predicts that Spence's skills and athletic ability will not be enough to walk away with the title. 

"He's a terrific prospect and I think he needs four or five more fights, good fights at a top level to become the best welterweight in the world," Sanchez told BaylorIC Worldwide-TV.

"I think its too early for him. I think Kell has got the experience and the education, the Carson Jones education of the first fight. He know how to deal with situations like that, he knows how to go twelve rounds. I think Errol Spence is going to learn that it takes more than having athletic ability and great boxing skills to beat a veteran like Kell Brook."