Kell Brook was no coward for retiring due to a horrific injury in his fight with Errol Spence Jr, despite what some have suggested.
Boxing can be a funny old sport at times.
In many ways it ends up being a tragic one for many of it’s brave participants. The people that make the decision to step inside the ropes for the entertainment of others.
One day they’re on top of the world, champion, as Kell Brook was before last Saturday night. The next day he’s back to square one and being labelled a quitter and even more disgustingly, a coward, in some quarters.
Fans always have the right to have an opinion of course – they are the ones shelling out their hard earned money to attend or watch fights like Saturday night.
But to label a professional fighter, especially a guy like Kell Brook, a quitter or a coward, is just downright wrong and misinformed.
It emerged after the fight that he had sustained a broken eye socket in round 7 and he battled on with the injury right up until the time the fight was ended at round 11.
That takes heart. Big, big heart. He’s a fighter that has always given value in his professional boxing career upon retrospective inspection.
Whether it be his sizzling early knockouts in the beginning of his career, to travelling to the US to dethrone Shawn Porter of a world title, to making the move to step up to middleweight and fight one of the most feared men in boxing – Gennady Golovkin.
He’s no quitter. No way. Not by a long shot.
Continuing on after an injury like he had could have easily caused him to sustain even worst damage to his eye long-term, perhaps even irreversible damage to his eyesight.
The reality is he is a parent and has a partner. He made the right move. Live to fight another day.
