Abel Sanchez on GGG-Brook: “We seem to forget that others have tried [moving up in weight] and succeeded”

In the history of boxing only a few very special fighters have managed to move up from welterweight to middleweight and rule the world there too. We are, on September 10, when he challenges the feared Gennady Golovkin for middleweight gold, going to see if Kell Brook is destined to go down as one of these special fighters (or just go down, as the IBF welter champ’s critics suggest).

Abel Sanchez, trainer of GGG, has defended Team-Golovkin’s decision to face Brook and, in speaking with RingTV, the coach used some of the instances in boxing history when smaller men moved up in weight and were successful as examples of what can, sometimes, happen.

“Did Ray Leonard or Tito Trinidad and Oscar De La Hoya make a courage mistake when they challenged a middleweight?” Sanchez responded to a question by RingTV.com that wondered if Brook had allowed his courage to overrule his common sense. “Kell Brook is the [IBF] welterweight champion and probably the best welter in the world. We seem to forget that others have tried and succeeded.”

Sanchez recounted for Ring some of the times in history when the unwritten rule that says, ‘a good big ’un beats a good little ’un,’ was disobeyed. Sanchez listed the following results that caused a surprise:

Leonard over Marvin Hagler, Tito Trinidad-William Joppy, De La Hoya-Felix Sturm, Shane Mosley, who went up from 135 to 147 to beat De La Hoya, and Roberto Duran, who went from 135 to 147 to beat Leonard (as well as going up to 160 and coming within a whisker of beating Hagler, and up to 160 to upset Iran Barkley). So, as Sanchez points out, it can be done. And Sanchez gives Brook props for trying to achieve greatness against his fighter.

But as we know, De La Hoya, Leonard, Duran, Trinidad, Mosley, et all are true greats of the sport. Brook is a fine fighter, maybe even a special fighter – we will find out in 59 day’s time if the Brit is great. Brook is known as “The Special One,” will he live up to his moniker on the big night set for The O2 in London?

Needless to say, Brook will have secured a special place in boxing history if he can pull it off.