Shawn Porter and Kell Brook will fight for Porter’s welterweight title on August 16 and it will be the fight of the year.
Porter and Brook had always threatened to make a name for themselves at welterweight for a few years but they struggled to get the big fights. Brook had trouble securing a bout with Devon Alexander for a long time and Porter was the one who took on Alexander back in December last year.
Porter was dominant and bullied Alexander for 12 rounds walking away with both a unanimous win and the IBF welterweight title.
For Brook it probably felt like a missed opportunity as he had to settle for wins over Carson Jones and Vyacheslav Senchenko in 2013.
Porter then got permission to fight Paulie Malignaggi and not only won, but he was utterly impressive in stopping the veteran inside 4 rounds.
The interesting thing about both fighters is that not only are they clearly talented but they have very different styles and very different questions marks hanging over them.
Porter is rugged, come forward physical fighter but he has a draw on his record when he couldn’t beat Julio Diaz (though he subsequently beat him in a rematch).
He isn’t the most polished of fighters and is probably slower than the more polished Brook.
Kell Brook on the other hand has never really fought anyone of world level. His best victory was over Vyacheslav Senchenko and even then he was rocked, as he was for 12 rounds against Carson Jones.
Brook strikes me as a guy who could be sensational but it is unclear how good he really is due to never really being tested.
A couple of year ago his trainer Dominic Ingle said that Brook wasn’t preparing properly for fights and that is why he struggled in the first fight against Carson Jones.
Brook has no excuses now and the rumours seem to be that he has his head on straight.
The reason I think the fight will be so good is that it reminds me of the match of Marcos Maidana and Amir Khan. Brook is faster and has power but has stamina issues and we know Porter can bang.
As a Brit I would love to see Brook take the title but I think Porter may have his number in the second half of the fight and cause too many problems for Brook.
I suspect Brook will last the twelve rounds and give all he has but the more rugged and experienced Porter should take this in what could eclipse Matthysse vs Molina as a fight of the year candidate.