British · Sheffield, England · Born 3 May 1986Kell Brook is a retired British professional boxer who held the IBF welterweight world title from 2014 to 2017.
Ezekiel "Kell" Brook was born on 3 May 1986 in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, and began boxing at 12 under the guidance of renowned trainer Brendan Ingle, at the same gym that produced fellow world champions Naseem Hamed and Johnny Nelson. He compiled an amateur record of 31 wins from 36 fights, winning two national Amateur Boxing Association titles. Brook turned professional in 2004 and developed into one of Britain's finest technical boxers, nicknamed "Special K," winning the British welterweight title before capturing the IBF world welterweight championship in 2014 with a decisive victory over Shawn Porter in Porter's home country of the United States. Brook made multiple successful defences of his title before moving up in weight to challenge middleweight king Gennady Golovkin in 2016, a brave performance that ended in a stoppage loss due to a fractured eye socket. He suffered a similar injury in a 2017 defeat to Errol Spence Jr., raising serious concerns about the fragile bone structure around his eye. Brook retired in 2022 with a record of 40 wins and three losses, having been ranked the world's best active welterweight by The Ring magazine in 2017, and remains one of the most technically gifted British boxers to emerge from Sheffield's storied amateur boxing tradition.
Former IBF World Welterweight Champion
How They Played
Orthodox stance, powerful puncher with good technical skills
Lasting Impact
Popular British welterweight who brought excitement to UK boxing
Career Honours
- British Boxing Board of Control Boxer of the Year 2014
British Athletes