Not many people give Kell Brook a chance to defeat Terence Crawford and capture the WBO welterweight title on Saturday night.
Bet MGM has Crawford installed as a -1000 favorite while Brook sits as a +550 underdog. To put this in perspective, if you place a $100 wager on Brook, you'd net $550. Brook knows the boxing world is doubting he can win. The former IBF welterweight champion believes in his heart that not only is he going to bring the championship back to his native England, but he's going to stop him.
"I stop him, or he quits on the stool," Brook predicted on a Monday Zoom call. "I'm fully focused. I've never been ready for a fight like this before. Looking forward to whatever Terence brings because I can match him. I'm ready for a war."
Brook (39-2, 27 KOs) is no stranger to the big stage. In his second venture to the United States, Brook defeated former two-time welterweight champion Shawn Porter to claim the IBF belt.
He made three title defenses before jumping up two weight classes in September 2016 to challenge then-unified middleweight titlist Gennadiy Golovkin. Brook gave Golovkin a formidable fight in the early going before the latter's power became too much and stopped Brook in the fifth round, breaking the Englishman's orbital bone in the process. The 34-year-old Brook went back down to 147 pounds for his next fight against Errol Spence Jr. Brook gave Spence a run for his money before getting his orbital broken once again and losing via 11th-round TKO.
Crawford (36-0, 27 KOs), the former undisputed junior welterweight champion, is considered by many boxing pundits as the pound-for-pound best fighter in the sport. To Brook, none of Crawford's accolades matter. Brook feels that those high-pressure moments leading up to Saturday make him think that he's more than ready for Crawford to bring to the table.
"I've been here before," Brook said. "I've been on this stage. I've been in there with pound-for-pound top fighters like Golovkin and Errol Spence. I took the title away from Shawn Porter in America. I know what it takes to be a champion."
Since moving up to 147 pounds in June 2018, Crawford is 4-0, with all of his wins coming inside the distance. Brook gives Crawford a stern warning that if he thinks he's going to be like Bud's previous four opponents, then he's got another thing coming.
"He's going to have a rude awakening, I'll tell you that, Brook said. "He's going to have a rude awakening Saturday night when he gets in there. I hope he's {overlooking me}. I hope he is because I'm coming with force. Trust me."