Ben Shalom Says Kell Brook v Chris Eubank is Being Ironed Out
Kell Brook (40-3, 28 KOs) is coming off the most satisfying win of his career. On February 2, the former IBF welterweight champ overpowered and overwhelmed arch-nemesis Amir Khan en route to a sixth round TKO. It was a performance that put Brook back as a major attraction on the UK boxing landscape.
After such a gratifying win and dominant performance, there’s been a debate from pundits on what Brook will do next. While the 35-year-old hinted that he might end his career on that high, it now seems he’s decided to carry on and continue fighting.
ZONING IN ON ONE GUY
Currently, in Newcastle, England promoting a card headlined by WBO women’s middleweight champ Savannah Marshall defending her title, promoter Ben Shalom discussed Brook’s future. While there are many options on the table, Shalom told Boxing Social that they have one specific opponent in mind.
“I think it’s a toss-up between Danny Garcia, retiring, Chris Eubank Jr, Conor Benn. Obviously, we’re working on the Eubank Jr fight to try to make it a possibility. It has to be at the right weight. It has to be a 50/50 fight.
Fans have to buy into it. I have to buy into it. It has to be safe for Kell, has to be safe for Chris. Chris has to compromise on the weight, and then the fight can happen, but I think we’re getting there. We want to make that fight happen in the summer.”
A WEIGHTY PROPOSITION
The issue of weight is key when it to a fight against Eubank (32-2, 23 KOs). Brook weighed 149 for his win over Khan. He’s been a welterweight for most of his career. Eubank has gone on record saying he’s willing to take the fight at a catchweight of 158 pounds.
In 2016, Brook went up to middleweight, losing to then-unified champion Gennady Golovkin. “Special K” has the frame to put on some pounds and is more of a junior middleweight at this stage of his career. If the fight with Golovkin counts for anything, he can carry the added weight rather well. According to Shalom, that’s the only thing hindering the fight from being made.
“The weight’s been the only part, at the moment. The weight is the only part, that’s what matters. What’s the point in getting into everything else if we don’t know what they’re going to compete at? I think we’ll get there. I think we can get there, and then the rest of it should be fairly straightforward.”
Shalom said he’s working behind the scenes with Eubank’s promoter, Kalle Sauerland, with the hopes of hammering out a deal. Should it happen, it would be another grudge match. Both Brook and Eubank have openly expressed disdain for one another. In England, it would draw big numbers and garner plenty of attention. Pro boxing is about money more than anything else. From a business perspective, it makes a lot of sense. Can the parties come together and hammer out a deal? That is the ultimate question.
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By: Michael Wilson Jr.
