Harry Greb. Ray Robinson. Carlos Monzon. Marvin Hagler. Bernard Hopkins. These are all names of past middleweight greats that have put their stamp on the division as the best the weight class has ever seen.
This Saturday night at Madison Square Garden Gennady Golovkin will finally get the opportunity to face another willing champion in the division to prove without a shadow of a doubt that he is the best middleweight.
Golovkin first won the WBA version of the middleweight championship in 2010 and has since made a Wilfred Gomez like run by having 14 defenses of his title all won by knockout. The competition for Golovkin hasn’t been the best that it could have been as many fighters were either not available or simply unwilling to get in the ring with Golovkin. Needless to say while Golovkin currently has the same amount of defences of his title as Carlos Monzon, he isn’t yet viewed in the same class as Monzon.
Golovkin’s amateur credentials of 345 wins with five losses speak for itself, but Golovkin got his first break in September 2012 against Grzegorz Proksa in New York on HBO. Golovkin was originally going to face Russian stylist Dimitry Pirog but due to an injury the opponent was changed. Proksa proved to still be a worthy challenger for Golovkin, but Golovkin walked through and dominated him from the start and knocked him down in rounds one, four, and five until the fight was stopped in the fifth.
From there Golovkin and his promoters decided to make the most of what Golovkin could offer by having him fight three to four times a year. By keeping Golovkin active by taking the chance of fighting on HBO in locations like Monaco have kept Golovkin as a worldwide name.
The activity and Golovkin’s all0action style made its arrival on the west coast in October 2014 against Marco Antonio Rubio where Golovkin was able to get a sellout and produce a highly energetic crowd that were firmly Golovkin fans.
Golovkin had now proven himself as a draw on both coasts of the United States and cemented himself as one of the next top draws for the sport.
Golovkin will now face fellow IBF middleweight champion David Lemieux at Madison Square Garden on PPV. The bout will feature the two biggest punchers in the middleweight division and will guarantee the fans an action packed night no matter how long the fight lasts.
Golovkin has a lot more to lose than Lemieux as he is the prohibitive favorite in the match. There will be detractors if he goes the distance or has trouble with Lemieux, and if Golovkin scores another quick early rounds knockout, there will be even more saying that Lemieux wasn’t any good and had lost before.
This matchup represents more than that to Golovkin. This is his time to shine as the fight will take place on HBO PPV and will be a sellout by fight time in Madison Square Garden.
Should Golovkin win, this bout more opportunities will arise to possibly face other champions in the division and another big fight against the Cotto-Canelo winner. This Saturday Golovkin begins the path to middleweight greatness, and all eyes will be on Golvkin to see what will happen.
– Hector Franco @mrhector_franco
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