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The long-awaited grudge match between former world champions Amir Khan and Kell Brook will finally take place at Manchester Arena in Manchester, England this Saturday night.
The niggle between the bitter rivals has been going on for the better part of a decade and now with both boxers closing in on the end of their careers the bout is finally taking place at a catchweight of 149-pounds.
Khan, 35, of Bolton has been training in the United States with Brian ‘Bomac’ McIntyre who is also the coach of reigning WBO welterweight champion Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford 38-0 (29), who holds knockout wins over both of the Brits.
“The altitude in Omaha and Colorado Springs was very, very difficult,” Khan said to Sky Sports of his training camp. “We’ve just got back, so still got the benefits of doing it. I’ve done a 12-round spar and an eight-round spar, finished off with the eight-round spar and it felt so easy! The oxygen, it just felt like there was too much of it.
“It’s amazing to know that I’ve got the fitness on my side. I’ve got the health, I’ve got the strength and I’ve got the team around me as well… They’ve got me in good shape. We’re going to go into this fight and win this fight. We’ve been focused in Omaha, up in the mountains in Colorado Springs, focused on our training. We don’t care what Kell and his team are doing.”
Khan believe the 35-year-old Brook from Sheffield is a shot fighter, despite question marks remaining over his own chin.
“His confidence is brittle, definitely,” Khan said. “And I can see right through him. You can see how he reacts when I talk to him. You could see he really dislikes me and hates me, which is normal. We’re going to be fighting each other come Saturday.
“But I just think it’s getting to him a bit too much where it could definitely throw his game-plan out the window, where he’s going to go into a fight, guns blazing, make mistakes and get caught himself.
“I’m staying calm. I find it quite funny when I speak to him and I can see the anger in him. I just kind of mess around with him really, to be honest. That’s what it’s come down to. I pick on things, and I know it’s going to get under his skin.
“But come fight night, we have a game-plan. I’m sure he has a game-plan. He’s going to be ready, he’s going to be prepared for the fight, like me. And we’re going to give the Manchester fans a massive fight.”
Eddie Hearn of Matchroom Boxing, who previously spent time trying to put the bout together, believes the fight is well past its used-by date but admitted he can understand why people will still want to tune in to watch.
“When I was trying to do the deal, it was a very different fight,” Hearn told SecondsOut. “When I was trying to do the deal it was for a world title. It was a fight that was a blockbuster. Still, people want to watch the fight, I know.”
Retired former world champion Ricky Hatton sees the match-up as compelling despite both boxers being very clearly past their best.
“Maybe it should have happened a few years ago but I think it’s an even better fight now. As you get older you don’t have the same stamina or speed,” Hatton told Sky Sports.
“Amir has the speed, the boxing ability, the footwork and movement to give Kell trouble. But Amir gets drawn into a fight – and that’s why we love him!
“As he gets older Amir might go into the trenches early which will make for a great fight. From rounds six, seven, eight and nine – Amir can get drawn in. Then it shifts into Kell’s favour.”
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