Amir Khan revealed he has lost all respect for Kell Brook after accusing his rival of making a racial slur but the Sheffield fighter insisted his “poppadom chin” remark has been taken out of context.
The pair traded several barbs at a heated final press conference a couple of days out from a long-awaited contest in Manchester this weekend, which will be held at a catchweight of two pounds above the 147lb-welterweight limit.
While there has been no lack of enmity in the build-up, Khan, born and raised in Bolton to Pakistani parents Falak and Shah, feels his bitter foe has crossed the line with what he perceived to be a put down with racial undertones.
Khan referenced the comment previously made by Brook at Thursday’s media event before the topic was hastily changed, although the Yorkshireman insisted he was merely referencing his opponent’s renowned susceptible punch-resistance.
But Khan told the PA news agency: “It’s so sad that that he had to come out with a comment like that. I respected him as a fighter, don’t get me wrong. It gives me an added push to stick it on him and give him a proper beating.
“At the end of the day we’re fighting each other but you still have some sort of respect for him – I think that’s gone out the window now. I thought maybe after the fight we could be friends, I don’t want to be his friend.
“People look up to Kell Brook, he’s on the biggest stage of his career. The reason we have to talk about this and get it out there is so people realise giving racial (abuse) should not happen and we are totally against it.
“Everyone needs to be on that and say ‘it shouldn’t happen’. People shouldn’t be racist especially in this day and age, come on. We’re in the 21st Century and we shouldn’t hear anything racial now. But it is still out there.”
Four of Khan’s five defeats in 39 fights have been stoppages and he has suffered devastating knockouts against Breidis Prescott and Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez, while he is no stranger to rising from the canvas to win.
Brook said: “What (Khan) is trying to do is get everyone on his side and think I’m some kind of racist character when I’m not. There’s no way I’m racist at all.
“He’s trying to put me under the bus by getting people up turn on me. I just meant by what I said is how delicate he is, poppadoms just break, which is the same as his chin.
“That’s the only angle I’m coming from. There’s no racial angle there at all, zero.”
All eyes will be on Brook at Friday’s weigh-in. The former IBF welterweight titlist has acknowledged his struggles at getting his weight down in the past and hinted he might deliberately come in heavier than the contracted 149lbs.
Every pound the two former world champions come in over that limit has the consequence of a £100,000 fine, but while Brook claimed he is on-weight, he suggested the monetary punishment might give him a tactical advantage.
He said: “It might be expensive but I might want to keep those pounds! I might be lying though. Mind games, mind games. He’s been playing mind games.”
Khan suspects the latter and is convinced Brook will come in at the stipulated weight.
He told reporters: “I am not sure he is in a position to lose that sort of money. I am sure he doesn’t want to be giving me 100s of thousands of pounds, he will kill himself making that weight.”
