VIDEO: Snow joke for Kell Brook ahead of high pressure clash with Rabchenko

The weather has been so bad in Sheffield this week that Kell Brook considered switching his clash with Sergey Rabchenko to a snowball fight.
Kell BrookKell Brook
Kell Brook

But then he remembered it may not be the wisest idea to engage in throwing those sort of bombs with a man much more accustomed to wintery conditions.

“I was considering having a snowball fight with Rabchenko but because he’s from Russia, I thought I better give that a miss,” Brook joked at the final press conference before Saturday’s fight at the FlyDSA Arena.

Kell BrookKell Brook
Kell Brook
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Geography may not be Brook’s strong point given Rabchenko is from Belarus but he is adept at providing a lighter moment to what are typically serious occasions just two days out from fight night.

And it showed the 31-year-old in relaxed mood ahead of one of the most high pressure fights of his career.

After losing his world title last May, Brook returns to the ring on Saturday night for the start of a new journey at a higher weight and the final stretch of a storied career.

Following back-to-back defeats – albeit against truly elite opposition in Gennady Golovkin and Errol Spence Jr – it is fair to say the pressure is on the Ingle fighter to show he still has a future at the top level.

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Kell Brook
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Brook insists he is well aware of the fact, and that is why he jumped at the chance to face someone of the calibre of Rabchenko, a gatekeeper to the world level.

“I know from sparring that he is a tough, very strong, clever fighter,” Brook said.

“I know I’m going to have my hands full but that is why I picked him because I didn’t want an easy ride.

“I want to show everyone that I can still perform at a very high level and I’ve still got it.

“I can’t wait to test out my new skills at a higher weight.

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“I’m on weight now, I’m not worried about it and I’m looking forward to smiling and performing.”

It is refreshing for Brook to not be concerned about stepping on the scales on the Friday before a fight.

The long-mooted switch up to the 154lb super welterweight division has lifted some of the weight off his shoulders.

And he insists there will be no concerns over another factor which has effected him in his most recent fights – his eye sockets.

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Brook suffered fractures to his orbital bones in his defeats to Golovkin and Spence but says preparations for his latest fight have left him confident he will have no problems this time around.

He said: “Getting those early sparring sessions out of the way was always going to be a good thing.

“Getting caught in the face, on the eyes. I needed it.

“But now I don’t even thing about it. It’s like it’s never happened.”

When it comes to sparring, Brook has plenty of experience of sharing a ring in the gym with Rabchenko.

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The two sparred on several occasions when the Minsk fighter was trained by Ricky Hatton in Manchester.

And Brook says if Saturday’s clash is anything like those previous sessions, fight fans are in for a treat.

He said: “It’s going to be very tough.

“I’ve never seen him looking as slim and in shape as he does now.

“Obviously he was not always in his best condition for spars because you never are at that stage of the camp.

“But he’s trained very hard for this fight.

“If the spars are anything to go by, it’ll be an unbelievable watch.”

And if not, the two could put on a pretty decent snowball fight in the Arena car park afterwards.