How Amir Khan and Kell Brook’s legacies stack up after feud-ending bout

Khan — Olympic silver medallist and multiple-time world champion — took bigger risks, enjoying stardom and wealth. Brook — long criticised for taking easy fights — won world titles, too, but perhaps more significantly claimed bragging rights against his bitter rival

When the referee stepped in to save a battered Amir Khan from yet another barrage from Kell Brook in the sixth round, it brought an end to a storied rivalry that had been simmering for nearly two decades. Brook emerged the clear winner in the deeply personal, much anticipated grudge match between two popular British boxers.

The bout, held in front of a sell-out 21,000-capacity crowd at the AO Arena in Manchester, may have been a non-title fight, but it was not short on significance. The two boxers had been on a collision course since their days as amateurs, but circumstances had stopped them from facing each other in the ring.

So much so that there was a serious possibility of the fight never happening. Brook and Khan, both 35, were at the end of their careers; time was running out.

Their rivalry began when Khan was picked ahead of Brook to represent Great Britain in the 2004 Athens Olympics. Khan won the silver medal in the lightweight category at the Games, and became an overnight sensation. He quickly turned professional, and enjoyed tremendous stardom and wealth with his boyish charm and quick punching hands.

Brook, on the other hand, took a more laboured approach to success. He started his professional career with wins over journeymen boxers, before winning his maiden title — the British welterweight crown — four years after his debut.

Brook did collect a few world titles later, but his resume lacked big-name fights. A resilient, talented fighter, Brook was long criticised for taking easy fights and not challenging himself against the best in the business. The few times that he did take the plunge — against the likes of Gennady Golovkin, Errol Spence Jr. and Terence Crawford — he tasted defeat.

To Brook’s credit, he did constantly push for a fight with Khan. The fans wanted it, and for Brook, it was a chance to prove the doubters wrong.