Kell Brook says he’s going to take his frustrations out on Kevin Bizier when he defends his IBF World Welterweight title at the Sheffield Arena on March 26, live on Sky Sports.
Brook makes the third defence of the crown he landed in August 2014, and the second against a Canadian mandatory challenge, as Bizier follows Jo Jo Dan in trying to wrestle the title from the unbeaten Sheffield star, who returns to action for the first time in ten months after injury ruled him out of a winter clash with Diego Chaves.
The 29 year old champion realised his World title dreams after forcing himself into the mandatory position and ripping the belt from Porter in California, and Brook says while the visitor has his full respect, he’s preparing to put on a boxing clinic in his hometown fortress as he targets summer blockbusters against the star names in the 147lb mix.
“You cannot take your eye of the ball,” said Brook. “Kevin is the mandatory challenger, he’s worked hard to get that shot and he deserves it. If I had looked past him and cut corners, you get found out. This is my belt, no-one is taking it from me and I have to be at my best. It’s all well and good saying that I want the big names but without putting on an explosive masterclass against Bizier I won’t get those fights. This is my hometown, my arena and my fans – no-one packs an Arena like I do here with those great fans, and I am going to make sure that my return to this place is going to be stylish. He’s getting in with the best and he’s got his work cut-out.
“The IBF don’t mess about, you have to take on your mandatory challengers and rightly so – that’s how I won this belt. I got injured with the leg in the knife attack so I had to fight Jo Jo Dan then I boxed Frankie Gavin at The O2 in a voluntary. He’d wanted the fight for a while so we got it on in a great night in London. Chaves was meant to be next and that would’ve been a tough fight but the injury means another mandatory. So opponent-wise, it’s been hard, but I want a unification fight next or something similarly huge to get people into a stadium watching me fight.
“The big names in the Welterweight division excite me and I think they excite the fans. I don’t do boring fights and I’m more than willing to go to America and knock the best out, or lay them out at Bramall Lane.
“I’m going to get business done in style on March 26 and then I want to unify the division this year. It’s basically been 10 months of training for this fight and I’m desperate to get in there and put on a show.”
Brook’s clash with Bizier is part of a huge night of action in the Steel City as Hull’s Olympic gold medal star Luke Campbell MBE returns to action in a Yorkshire derby with Dewsbury’s Gary Sykes for the vacant Commonwealth Lightweight title.
Adam Etches is straight back into title action on the card, Sheffield Heavyweights Dave Allen and Richard Towers clash in a British title eliminator and Andy Townend meets Craig Poxton for the English Super-Featherweight title.
Tickets priced at £40, £60, £80, £100 and £150 are on sale now from the Sheffield Arena on 0114 2565656 and at www.sheffieldarena.co.uk. VIP tickets priced at £250 are exclusively available from www.matchroomboxing.com.
Tickets for March 26 are also available from http://www.stubhub.co.uk/matchroom-boxing-tickets/ – StubHub is the official ticket partner and marketplace of Matchroom Boxing.
