Brilliant Kell Brook beats bitter rival Amir Khan with sixth-round stoppage

Kell Brook channelled years of frustration into one of the most polished performances of his career as he stopped bitter rival Amir Khan inside six rounds at Manchester’s AO Arena.

Brook has courted a showdown against an opponent he has come to despise for several years only to be constantly rebuffed, but after being given an opportunity here, he grasped it with both hands in this 149lb catchweight bout.

The Yorkshireman shrugged off being vociferously jeered to the ring by a crowd largely in support of Bolton-born and raised Khan and repeatedly left his foe on rubbery legs with countless punishing shots to the head.

Khan refused to buckle and stayed upright throughout but he absorbed some vicious blows and his face was heavily marked when referee Victor Loughlin stepped in to wave off the fight 51 seconds into the sixth round.

Khan, fighting at the venue where he first won a world title in 2009, only showed flashes of the form that saw him become a unified light-welterweight champion more than a decade ago as Brook claimed the bragging rights.

While Brook improved his record to 40 wins from 43 fights, the decorated Khan’s future in the sport is now up in the air after the sixth defeat of his professional career in what was his first outing since July 2019.