32 minutes separated the start of one final ring walk and Kell Brook being lifted onto Dominic Ingle’s shoulders in celebration.
That was all it took to settle a fight 17 years in the making last February, Brook dismantling Amir Khan in emphatic fashion for what appeared to be the perfect full stop on a career that he declared over a few months later.
Little troubled Brook during that half an hour in Manchester, the Sheffield fighter entering the ring to ‘All of the Lights’ and leaving it with all of the bragging rights, but the picture over the past year has been a significantly darker one.
Three professional defeats, two of which resulted in surgery on fractured eye sockets, do not compare to the struggle the 37-year-old has had with the reality of retirement from boxing.
“It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done, dealing with life as a normal person,” Brook tells Standard Sport, via Free Bets.
“I’ve been so institutionalised into boxing. When that came to a complete end, I didn’t know how to go about my day-to-day things. I felt like my life had ended. Nobody was phoning me, telling me to eat this or go to sleep at this time.
“Nobody teaches you how to deal with retirement. They teach you how to become world champion, how to avoid shots and win a fight. But nobody prepares you for dealing with life after boxing.”
Rock bottom came earlier this year, when Brook took to social media to “apologise for the hurt I’ve caused” and revealed he was seeking help in his battle with depression, after he was filmed snorting a white powder.
It was a significant step for the former welterweight world champion, one that has ultimately turned his life around. Brook opened up and listened to those who wanted to support him. The structure missing in those early months of retirement now comes from meditation, gratitude lists and “keep-fitting” in the gym, along with a reassessment of those he holds close.
“I am now the happiest I’ve been in all my life,” Brook says. “I feel free and content — I’m got my head around it.
“My circle has become very small. Whatever I do, if I’ve got nothing or I have everything, they’re going to be there. They’re the ones that I love.
“I’ve had people holding my hand, telling me everything is going to be alright and sometimes you just need that. People who you are close with, showing you the tools to deal with situations.”
Brook has hinted in recent months that he could return to the ring, against the likes of Conor Benn or Liam Smith, but insists he will be “very happy” should he remain retired. The obvious question then is why would he risk disturbing that.
“I was committed to retiring after the Amir Khan fight in my own head,” Brook says. “Some fighters go on past when they should, but I felt like a spring chicken in there. It was an unbelievable performance.
“I love the occasion and the pressure, getting myself into frightening condition. I’ve still got it and with the right fight to get me excited, I could come back and roll the years back again.”
I didn’t know how to go about my day-to-day things — I felt like my life had ended
A fight with Benn would fit the bill. More than six months have passed since Benn failed two drugs tests to collapse his big-money bout with Chris Eubank Jr, and the 26-year-old - who strongly denies any wrongdoing - remains without a British Boxing Board of Control (BBBoC) license.
As a result his return is expected to take place in the Middle East or America, with Brook talked up as a potential opponent. The pair were both in Dublin last month for Katie Taylor’s fight with Chantelle Cameron, and had to be pulled apart after squaring up at ringside.
“I don’t like the guy,” Brook says bluntly. “That’s a fight I could get up for.
“He’s not even won a British title. Don’t get me wrong, he’s looking the part against fighters he should be beating. He’s got it all there, looks like he could go all the way. But if I go in there with him, I’d take that zero and turn it into a one.”
Would Brook be comfortable taking that fight while Benn’s saga with the governing body remains unresolved? “I’m with the BBBoC,” he responds. “I don’t want to be in trouble with them for fighting Conor. If he can get approval from the board and the all-clear, then the fight can definitely happen. Until then, it won’t.”
🤯🤯🤯@ConorNigel & @SpecialKBrook 𝗖𝗟𝗔𝗦𝗛 ringside at #TaylorCameron 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/PVwvO2w972
— Matchroom Boxing (@MatchroomBoxing) May 20, 2023
Whether that bout materialises remains to be seen, but Brook does not appear to be a man who now needs boxing. His experiences fighting for belts inside the ring and happiness outside of it though means he has more to offer the sport than most.
“Maybe it could be managing and training fighters, maybe opening a Kell Brook Academy,” he says of his future plans. “People that are really depressed and have anxiety, reaching out and helping them. It doesn’t have to be boxing. These are some of the things I’ve dealt with myself.
“I had a horrific time after I retired, I want to help those who have no guidance on how to survive and deal with real life.”
