How Much Respect Should Brook and Khan Get. . .

Stupid risks Yes they made/make money but there was a more suitable path they could have gone I don't think people realize what Brook is in-store for

The same respect you got for Trinidad for fighting Roy Jones Jr

It's detrimental to a sport that has always lurched from on farce to another and still survived (although we could argued that its getting worse) one of my primary concerns LacedUp is the effect it has on British boxing and it ties into what b00g13manhas mentioned about pedigree. Before Khan stepped in there with Canelo he was drawing inspiration from and also trying to draw parallels with the feat of Sugar Ray Leonard. Which I can understand from his perspective but it isn't comparable, what we essentially have here is Britain's two best welterweights sacrificing themselves on the alter of middleweight champions. What does that say about their mindsets and what they think they can achieve in their own division? Granted on the surface, Khan seems to be partly motivated by avoiding the kind of defeat that would signal the end of his career whilst Brook's decision seems partly born out of frustration at not being involved in big fights (although could we rule out some bizarre, twisted one upmanship motivated by his obsession with Amir?). But accepting an invite to the party as the fall guy, is that what fighters with a champions mentality do? I don't think they've taken into account the effect that has on their standing, and as bojangles1987 says there's a chance that the physical damage could be detrimental to Brook's career. I think we'll see that with Amir, I wouldn't bet against his already less than stellar punch resistance when he's caught unawares being reduced further after the one punch K.O. It might not be a simple as just dropping back down in weight and carrying on. I'd agree with Weltschmerz though. This fight will sell over here and it'll do good numbers. For all my critisms of it on a rational level, my initial emotional reaction was 'f*ck yeah, let's have him Kell'. Completely irrational, but that's what sells these types of fights, emotion and hype.

Say you're in 3rd grade. You have a ton of 3rd graders bullying you and challenging you to a fight. Instead of manning up and fighting these bullies, you challenge an 8th grader. You know you're going to get your ass kicked but you feel better about it because you have an excuse for said ass kicking and don't have to go to sleep at night feeling inferior to your peers. Should that get you more respect? That factor, along with the money they are getting for these suicide missions, along with putting the welterweight division on hold....I just don't see the big deal.

I think both are stupid moves that were/are deemed to fail. 2 welterweights that should have fought each other ended up fighting 2 middleweights that should have fought each other. It's a shame in my opinion. Obviously all parties involved made record breaking paydays, but from Brook/Khan perspective, they are/were putting their health seriously on the line. I agree with this message

Both deserve lots of credit but Brook more because it seems everyone would fight Canelo and very few will actually sign the contract to fight GGG.. Both are a no lose fight because they're expected to get beat and get paid very well to do so. Khan we already knew would get blasted out because he has a glass jaw, Brook we have no clue and we are basing it just on the size difference.

Khan deserves respect as he went in there to win, and took some rounds. Brook, we simply don't know yet.

. . .for stepping up to the middleweight division (albeit one at a catch weight) and taking on fights that the majority of observers gave/give them virtually no chance of winning? Specifically how that relates to bravery. Khan was commended by many as having a 'big set of balls' for taking the Alvarez fight. The same narrative is now starting to be used to frame Brook's decision to fight Golovkin. I'm in no way decided on this one but I'd question whether that holds up to scrutiny. There's a bravery involved of course but is it any more so than that of Dominic Wade or Liam Smith? There's a long precession of fighters who had virtually no chance against Golovkin and Alvarez who stepped through the ropes and weren't particularly lauded for their bravery. Often they were derided. I'd lean towards stating that those fighters, contrary to popular oppinion, showed more bravery than Khan or Brook. After all, they weren't equipped with an ego salving excuse. Most fighters aren't afraid of being beat, nor are they afraid of being hurt. The fear comes from the thought of being embarrassed. From being shown to be a lesser fighter and man than they professed to be, to themselves and others. From coming second best to a legitimate rival. That wasn't/isn't a concern in either of these cases. Both will have jumped up two weight divisions for the opportunity to be involved in a big fight experience, against a big named opponent for a big payday, without the risk of damaging their sense of self or their reputation. Surely that's more of a business decision than a brave one? Granted there's the chance of getting hurt but fighters disavow that, it's rarely a factor in their decision making process if it's even acknowledge at all. So essentially what we have is a business fight from both sides. From one side it's easy on the ego, from the other it's an easier nights work and both get a big payday. And in lieu of a competitive fight we're left with another spectacle. Thanks for a balanced take on this. We are not overfed measured and intelligent threads in NSB at any time. And then to the bolded, right on. We see fighters cry because of this, when they get beat in the ring in front of millions. Thirdly, this is business more than anything else as you also point out. People are offended for a variety of reasons that a fight like this gets made, but it's about $$$ at then end of the day and you're just a fool if you don't see that. Watch Brook-GGG sell out the O2 -- this means the fight is in fact a success and worth it no matter if you like it or not.

There's taking a risk, and there's taking a stupid risk. I think they're both stupid risks. Fighters who usually take these steps normally have some sort of pedigree behind them. Khan and Brook have/had neither.

I admire Brook's move more than Khan's because Brook is relatively unproven and could take a real beating here. If Golovkin can't just end him with one punch, he may take the kind of punishment that permanently damages his career. Brook is taking a huge risk that, even with the excuse, may be very bad for him.

I think both are stupid moves that were/are deemed to fail. 2 welterweights that should have fought each other ended up fighting 2 middleweights that should have fought each other. It's a shame in my opinion. Obviously all parties involved made record breaking paydays, but from Brook/Khan perspective, they are/were putting their health seriously on the line.