Golovkin v Alvarez – Everything you need to know ahead of the fight
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Now that the hype over Floyd Mayweather v Conor McGregor has gone, the boxing world has turned its focus to what should be one of the best fights in recent memory; Gennady Golovkin vs Canelo Alvarez.
In a clash being billed as the ‘Supremacy’, the WBA, WBC, IBF and The Ring middleweight belts will all be on the line.
We’ve taken a look at everything you need to know ahead of the super fight:
Where and when is the fight taking place?
The fight will be held at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, on Saturday, September 16th. UK viewers will either need to have a late night or early morning as the fight isn’t set to take place until 3am on Sunday morning.
How can UK viewers watch?
The fight is available for UK viewers on PPV channel Box Nation for £16.95.
Why is the fight so huge?
Golovkin is undefeated in his 37 fights and he’s won 33 of those by knockout. Alvarez has only lost one of his 51 fights and that was to Floyd Mayweather, and there’s no shame losing to him! With all the belts on the line, something has to give.
Who's the favourite?
The bookmakers currently have Golovkin as the 4/6 favourite. Alvarez is 6/5 with the draw available at 25/1.
Will the fight go the distance?
Such is the power of the two fighters, it’s quite surprising to that the bookies have the fight going the distance. They have a points decision available at 8/11 with a stoppage priced at Evens.
The Purse
Despite being the underdog, Canelo will earn a higher guaranteed amount than GGG as he’s more popular in the USA and Mexico than his opponent. Canelo is guaranteed $20m whilst Golovkin will earn at least $15m.
If the buy-rates for the fight are as expected, then the two fighters will double their money.
Possible rematch straight away?
Anyone who’d like to see these two go at it again in the future should hope for a Golovkin win.
In an interview with the LA Times, Eric Gomez, the president of Golden Boy Promotions revealed that Alvarez had an immediate rematch clause in place on his contract, whereas Golovkin, if he loses, won’t be guaranteed a rematch.
Tale of the tape
Who has the advantages in terms of the tape?
Age: Canelo (27) is eight years younger than Glolovkin (35).
Height: GGG (5ft 10in) is one inch taller than Alvarez (5ft 9in)
Reach: Glolovkin (74in) has a three-inch reach advantage over the Mexican (71in).
Canelo's fighting style
Canelo is very much a counter puncher. He possesses a lot of power but he uses his jab so well and will capitalise on any mistakes with devastating speed.
GGG's fighting style
Golovkin is a swarming fighter who tries to overwhelm his opponents applying constant pressure. His power is phenomenal, as displayed by his fantastic knockout record.
Canelo's most notable wins
Matthew Hatton – Back in March, 2011, Canelo won the vacant WBC light middleweight title with a convincing performance over Britain’s Matthew Hatton. Despite being docked a point in the seventh round, all three ringside judges scored the bout at 119-108 in favour of Álvarez.
Amir Khan – On May 7th, 2016, Canelo fought Amir Khan who moved up two divisions to challenge for Canelo’s middleweight titles. The fight ended in round six as Canelo landed a devastating right hand to knock out the British fighter.
Julio César Chávez Jr – In a fight between two of Mexico’s highest profile stars, Alvarez defeated Julio César Chávez Jr by unanimous decision with all three judges scoring the fight 120-108 in Canelo’s favour. Chávez fought a very, very cautious fight and Alvarez was able to display his ability to box at a very high level.
Golovkin's most notable wins
David Lemieux – In October 2015, GGG defeated David Lemieux in a unification fight with a dominating performance. The referee stopped the contest in the eight round after GGG had landed a staggering 280 of the 549 punches he had thrown.
Kell Brook – GGG defended his world titles against undefeated British IBF Welterweight Champion Kell Brook and did so in devastating fashion. He broke Brook’s eye socket early on and the Sheffield fighter was forced to quit in order to save his eyesight.
Daniel Jacobs – Glolovkin’s streak of 23 KO wins ended in his last fight as he went the distance with Daniel Jacobs. However, what we did learn from the fight was that GGG is not all about brute strength and power as he boxed himself to a unanimous points win.
Floyd's pick
The undefeated, and now retired, Floyd Mayweather thinks that Alvarez will hand Golovkin his first loss.
He said: “Do I think Triple G can beat Canelo? Absolutely not. I think there’s a few guys that can beat Triple G, and Canelo is on the top of the list. I believe that he’ll beat him. He’s got good punching power, but he’s flat-footed.”
AJ's pick
Heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua is good friends with Canelo and as such, he’s picking him to win too.
He said: “So I have been riding with Canelo for a long time but it’s going to be a tough fight because Triple G is from Kazakhstan, he has the good foundations of a boxer. But so has Canelo, so I’ll put my money on him.”
Amir Khan's pick
Amir Khan, who lost to Alvarez in 2016, is also picking the upset.
He said: “I honestly think he beats Triple G. A lot of people underestimate him, I don’t know why. I’ve been in the ring with Canelo. I’ve never been in the ring with Triple G, but I’ve been in the ring with Canelo and he’s hard to hit. He’s quite tricky and like I said he hits very hard, so you have to give him that respect. I think that he gives a lot of people problems.”
Sugar Ray Leonard's pick
Legendary boxer Sugar Ray Leonard is picking Golovkin but admits that it is so close to call.
He said: “I give the edge to GGG because of who he is and what he has. But I love Canelo, too. That’s going to be a great fight. It’s one of those where you just got to flip a coin.”