Kell Brook vs. Errol Spence Jr.: Live round by round results

Two welterweights who appear to be in their primes collide in a big showdown in England.

Boxing can be stingy with truly top-notch fighter pairings from time to time, but every now and then, a match-up comes along that you kind of can’t believe is happening. Kell Brook vs. Errol Spence Jr. belongs in that category.

Both men have been so good that they have had a tough time finding opponents who want to fight them, which might be one of the reasons they ended up facing each other. Brook (37-1, 25 KOs) is the veteran at 31 years of age, and “The Special One” has never lost at 147 pounds. In fact his only loss came in his last fight, when he was stopped in five rounds by Gennady “GGG” Golovkin.”

He’s not the betting favorite, though, even though the bout is taking place in his hometown of Sheffield, England. That’s because Spence (21-0, 18 KOs) has looked so good so far in his career. He’s taking a big step up in competition this time out, though, which could be a factor as he goes for his first world title.

FanSided.com is proud to bring you live Brook vs. Spence round by round results and our own scorecard, so please refresh often for the latest.

As the challenger, Spence makes his walk to the ring while serenaded by boos. He’s in white and gold tonight. Brook, perhaps the only world class boxer with two active nicknames (“The Special One” and “Special K”), makes a slower and more deliberate ring walk to “All of the Lights” by Kanye West. The fans are chanting and definitely live.

We’ve got two national anthems to get through here, and it sounds like there are some boos for “The Star-Spangled Banner.” Interestingly, both songs are instrumental; no singers in Sheffield.

Howard Foster is the referee for this one. Michael Buffer does the fighter intros and we are ready to go.

Round 1:

Lots of feinting in the opening minute. Brook tries to duck his way inside. Caution is definitely on both fighters’ minds, though Brook lands a few right hands. He’s been able to pull the trigger better than Spence, though he gets inside and works the body. Spence lands a left uppercut before the ref steps in; some of his shots look pretty low. Spence gets off a combo and Brook responds with two right hands.

FanSided.com: 10-9 Spence

Round 2:

Big swing and miss by Spence right off the bell. Brook’s right hands chase the challenger back, and he nearly lands a huge right from close range. Spence jabs his way in and gets tied up. Left hooks by Spence are answered by a right upstairs and a body shot. Brook goes with a 1-2 and Spence fights back with crisp jabs. Spence’s guard is picking off a lot of Brook’s shots. Both men score with jabs at the same time, and Spence tries to flurry right at the bell.

FanSided.com: 10-9 Brook, 19-19 after two rounds

Round 3:

Spence finds a home for his left hook, and he clubs away with both hands. He looks like he’s trying to pick up the volume. Both fighters land right hands as they scramble along the ropes. Brook backs Spence up a bit, and he nearly corners Spence while he connects with a right hand. The ref warns the fighters for elbows on the inside. Spence ends up backed up again, and in a close round, that might tip it the other way.

FanSided.com: 10-9 Brook, 29-28 Brook after three rounds

Round 4:

This time it’s Brook who is the immediate aggressor. He shoots a few rights while Spence tries to get inside. Defense has gone away a bit both ways as they exchange, and Spence is scoring more to the body. They lean on each other against the ropes and try body shots. Spence punches in but Brook stands his ground with an uppercut. Brook lands a left hook on the break and tries to pour it on, but Spence is game and returns fire. Close round again, but Brook probably edged it late.

FanSided.com: 10-9 Brook, 39-37 Brook after four rounds

Round 5:

Spence seems to be thrown off-balance more than the champ, which never looks good to the judges. Spence jabs in and follows to the body, but Brook is using good head movement and lands an uppercut. Brook knocks Spence back into the corner and bangs the body too. Spence fires two quick body punches but Brook lands a counter right. That’s been a great punch for him. Spence has his best moment in a while, landing a combo and shoeshining body shots.

FanSided.com: 10-9 Brook, 49-46 Brook after five rounds

Round 6:

Brook lands a right hand and Spence appears hurt, but Spence lands a number of shots and may just have been off-balance. Spence has to shoulder the champ off him to get room. Spence jabs and goes to the body and lands both. Nice one-two combo for Spence but Brook answers. A really tough round to score.

FanSided.com: 10-9 Spence, 58-56 Brook after six rounds

Round 7:

One knockdown either way could really make a big difference. A quieter first minute to this one, with Brook swinging wildly with an uppercut and taking a body shot. Short left hands by Spence connect but not the big one that follows. A 1-2 backs Brook up, but he charges right back in. Spence jabs and circles away, with Brook coming back with a right downstairs. There’s a nice exchange with Spence landing quantity but Brook with the stronger single shot.

FanSided.com: 10-9 Spence, 67-66 Brook after seven rounds

Round 8:

The ref is really letting them go, which is good but makes the in-fighting tense. Brook lands the harder shots in an exchange in the center of the ring, though it doesn’t seem to have hurt Spence the way he makes it seem. Spence is still throwing plenty of punches, and both men land lead power shots. Left-right by Spence is flashy, and he’s the one coming on late in this round. Some lunging by Brook as he tries to uncork more wild right hands.

FanSided.com: 10-9 Brook, 77-75 Brook after eight rounds

Round 9:

The fighters go right to close range, and Steve Farhood has the fight even on the Showtime card. The ref finally stops things so Brook can have a glove taped back up. His left eye is looking pretty swollen. it might be effecting him as he is on the back foot a bit. Spence finally chases Brook down and lands some clubbing blows until Brook pushes him back into the corner. Not sure if Brook is hurt but he is stumbling a bit as Spence scores with numerous lefts.

FanSided.com: 10-9 Spence, 86-85 Brook after nine rounds

Round 10:

We’ll see if Spence’s big round has turned things in his favor. Sure looks like it as he batters Brook back to the ropes and knocks him down. He beats the count but is barely fighting back. His body movement helps him weather the storm, and he finally responds with his own shots. Might Spence have punched himself out? These guys have spent a ton of energy in this frame. There’s still almost a minute left too. Crazy swings and misses save anyone else from hitting the mat.

FanSided.com: 10-8 Spence, 95-94 Spence after 10 rounds

Round 11:

Another early timeout for Brook to get his glove re-taped, and he lands some punches right after he gets fixed up. Spence is mercilessly peppering him with body shots, and now some head shots are landing too. Brook takes a knee along the ropes, and one wonders if his orbital bone is broken again. The ref signals that the fight is over, and Spence has won his first world championship in impressive fashion.

The winner by KO … and new IBF welterweight champion … Errol “The Truth” Spence Jr. at 1:47 of Round 11.