Is Kell Brook the biggest BS’er in boxing?

[DreamFighter]

He wasn't a BSer, he just never really got the chance to strut his stuff at 147 IMO. The Porter win was great, but because it was the IBF belt he won that meant he got saddled with crap mandatories like Jo Jo Dan and Kevin Bizier. Then he couldn't really get the big names, Khan was the obvious matchup but any negotiations for that kept getting derailed by petty drama. He didn't have any luck with anyone other big names either, and then he got stabbed which kept him out of the ring for a long time and restricted him to a low-level opponent for his comeback. The decision to fight Golovkin was brave but both at the time and in retrospect was incredibly foolhardy. The injuries from that fight severely hampered him, and then the one time the IBF order a worthy mandatory he gets Spence. If Brook hadn't been smashed up by Golovkin previously then he might have won that fight, as it was he wasn't doing so bad for the first half of it. Basically he was never a fraud or anything but his career has been mismanaged both by Hearn (should never have okayed the Golovkin fight and should have gotten him better fights at WW) and by himself (if you get stabbed in a bar on holiday then I'd say the chances are that you're at least somewhat to blame, apparently he enjoys out-of-the-ring confrontations.) He was unlucky to be the one that got saddled with Spence as a mandatory as well. The sad thing is that I think we've probably seen the best of him, his prime years were wasted on pointless fights, and between the injuries he's suffered and the bigger, stronger opponents he's gonna be tasked with facing I don't think he'll have as much success at LMW. It's a shame because he was a very good boxer, when he was at his best he'd be a frightening matchup for anyone at WW. Both he and Khan should be looking to make as much as possible from their (way overdue) fight and then retire honestly.

and yet he has one world class win his entire career.

[Scopedog]

and yet he has one world class win his entire career.

That's true but you can't judge a fighter solely by looking at their record book, you have to actually watch his fights too. He was tall, could crack hard and was laser-accurate with fast hands. His only real achilles heel was his stamina. Obviously you can only speculate about fights that never happened but if he'd have fought the likes of Thurman or Garcia during the span between taking the title off of Porter and getting stabbed I think he would have won. He really should have been looking to fight a good Welterweight instead of Golovkin - if he had, chances are we'd be talking about him in a different way now.

[DreamFighter]

That's true but you can't judge a fighter solely by looking at their record book, you have to actually watch his fights too..

you cant judge someone based on knocking out bums either.

sure but eye test is worth something.

But one world class win is basically the resume of a transient one off opportunist titlist, someone who was lucky to get a title.

[Scopedog]

you cant judge someone based on knocking out bums either.

sure but eye test is worth something.

But one world class win is basically the resume of a transient one off opportunist titlist, someone who was lucky to get a title.

I don't know if you can say he was lucky when he beat Porter at his peak away from home. It's not like he won it vacant or on a fluke.

[DreamFighter]

I don't know if you can say he was lucky when he beat Porter at his peak away from home. It's not like he won it vacant or on a fluke.

yeh but it does stink of Porter not being all that, though he does have Dev on his resume. And still, Kell beat a titlist, its good, its just its the only good his entire career so far.

[Scopedog]

yeh but it does stink of Porter not being all that, though he does have Dev on his resume. And still, Kell beat a titlist, its good, its just its the only good his entire career so far.

Porter's only ever lost close decisions to top level guys, so even if he's not at the absolute top of the pile he's still plenty legit if you ask me. When Brook stepped up to fight him he was a huge deal.

I do get what you're saying though, the only big fights that materialised for him were Golovkin and Spence. I'm not even sure if Golovkin really counts, that was such an absurd physical mismatch that it should never have happened. Brook hit him clean a bunch of times and in the aftermath Golovkin said something like "He is good boxer, but he is not middleweight. His power, I no feel." I feel like in the loss to Spence, in the meantime, his performance was affected so much by the damage that he took in the Golovkin fight that I'm not sure that fully counts either, although I'm aware that sounds like a copout. I just wish we could be living in the timeline where he got some more decent opponents at Welter and didn't sign up to get broken by Golovkin like an idiot so we'd know for sure. I get your point that he doesn't have those so you can't really regard him as anything other than a one hit wonder, which I do understand, but I just feel like with Brook there are all these other complications and exacerbating circumstances and I can't help but wonder what might have been without them. I feel like we only ever saw the "true" Kell Brook against Porter and Alexander and against that string of rubbish opponents he had after that.

Maybe I'll meet you halfway and concede that Brook is ultimately an example of unfulfilled potential. Maybe he'll find himself again at LMW and prove us both wrong but like I said earlier, I doubt it.

[DreamFighter]

Porter's only ever lost close decisions to top level guys, so even if he's not at the absolute top of the pile he's still plenty legit if you ask me. When Brook stepped up to fight him he was a huge deal.

I do get what you're saying though, the only big fights that materialised for him were Golovkin and Spence. I'm not even sure if Golovkin really counts, that was such an absurd physical mismatch that it should never have happened. Brook hit him clean a bunch of times and in the aftermath Golovkin said something like "He is good boxer, but he is not middleweight. His power, I no feel." I feel like in the loss to Spence, in the meantime, his performance was affected so much by the damage that he took in the Golovkin fight that I'm not sure that fully counts either, although I'm aware that sounds like a copout. I just wish we could be living in the timeline where he got some more decent opponents at Welter and didn't sign up to get broken by Golovkin like an idiot so we'd know for sure. I get your point that he doesn't have those so you can't really regard him as anything other than a one hit wonder, which I do understand, but I just feel like with Brook there are all these other complications and exacerbating circumstances and I can't help but wonder what might have been without them. I feel like we only ever saw the "true" Kell Brook against Porter and Alexander and against that string of rubbish opponents he had after that.

Maybe I'll meet you halfway and concede that Brook is ultimately an example of unfulfilled potential. Maybe he'll find himself again at LMW and prove us both wrong but like I said earlier, I doubt it.

i'd say hes a mix of some serious ducking and the occasional stepup to show he is world class.