International Boxing Federation welterweight champion Kell Brook will be rooting for his rival Amir Khan, when the former world champ takes on Saul "Canelo" Alvarez on May 7 at T-Mobile Arena.
Brook told The Mirror that he wants Khan to win in the Cinco de Mayo showdown -- not because he thinks the Bolton native is better than Canelo but because he just wants to keep Khan relevant in the welterweight division. The 29-year-old world champion said that he is still aching to face his fellow British boxing superstar.
"I don't want to see him get hurt," Brook said. "I wouldn't want to see any Brit going abroad to another country getting hurt. I'll be supporting him that night, all the way. He is representing our country so I wish him all the best in the fight. Plus I want him to win so that it keeps the possibility of our fight alive."
Brook, who owns a perfect 36-0 record with 25 knockout victories, is coming off a successful title defense against Kevin Bizier, who got knocked out in the second round of their world title fight on Saturday at Sheffield Arena in Yorkshire, United Kingdom.
Now that he has kept his title and perfect record, Brook is looking for bigger fights and he thinks nothing will be bigger than facing Khan in the UK. However, the Yorkshire native insisted that he is not losing sleep about it, saying that there are other big fights waiting for him elsewhere if Khan decides not to collide with him.
"Me and Khan get talked about a lot because we're both from Britain and because of our history and the bad blood between us," Brook added. "But if me and Khan didn't happen, it's not the end of the world. There are other big names, other champions with belts."
Khan, a former light welterweight world champion, reportedly considered facing Brook before the offer to face Canelo came along. The 29-year-old is considered as heavy underdog after agreeing to a catchweight of 155 pounds, which favors Alvarez because he has been fighting at the same weight over the past several years.
But in a recent interview with BoxingScene, Khan expressed strong confidence that he will win against Alvarez. He pointed out that he very motivated because the showdown with Canelo is the biggest fight of his career.
"This is such a big motivation for me," Khan said. "That is why I am not going to throw it away. I've always been asking for a big fight and my time has come now. I am not just going to get beat. I am going to go up in this fight and prove why I wanted the big fight."
