Eaton Thatcher
Kell Brook (+110) vs Errol Spence Jr. (+110), Draw (+2500)
After a convincing win over Leonard Bundu in August of last year, Errol Spence Jr. (21-0) called out Kell Brook (36-1) and demanded a shot at the IBF welterweight title. But Brook kept Spence Jr. on the back-burner while he sought a bigger fight against fellow countryman Amir Khan. Negotiations with the Khan camp ultimately fell through. Now Brook is taking Spence Jr. up on his offer.
Originally, the fight was scheduled for May 20 in Sheffield, but now it’s being pushed back a week and moved to a different location. The date and location may still be in the works, but the fight looks like it’s set in stone. How do the welterweights stack-up?
Kell Brook is coming off his first-ever professional loss after moving up two weight divisions to face Gennady Golovkin. Despite losing, his performance won over the hearts of fans around the world. He stepped up to face the most feared fighter in the middleweight division and exposed the undefeated champion in ways we’ve never seen before.
We saw Golovkin take some big hits as Brook exploited his vulnerabilities, but ultimately Golovkin was unfazed by anything Brook threw his way. That’s hardly a criticism of Brook. He moved up two weight classes to take on a fighter that has never been knocked down in his entire career. Brook fought admirably, but after his eye socket was busted open, his corner was forced to throw in the towel.
While Errol Spence is undefeated in 21 professional fights, his record is padded with wins against little-known fighters. The upcoming fight against Brook will be by far the biggest of his career and he’s been seeking this title shot for a long time. He’s one of the hottest prospects in the welterweight division and the upcoming fight is his first chance to really make a name for himself.
The bookmakers are split evenly on this fight and it’s easy to see why. Spence has shown tremendous potential so far; Brook has established himself as one of the best fighters in the stacked welterweight division. It’s a battle of known commodity versus untapped talent.
The safe bet here is the veteran Brook, who’s faced much stiffer competition in his time. Spence has a great chance to prove himself, but I think Brook will carry the day, especially if they’re fighting in England. That would be an extremely tough environment for the 27-year-old New Yorker.
Pick: Kell Brook (+110)
Photo credit: “boxing” by Distillated CC BY-SA 2.0 [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0], via Flickr.
