By Keith Idec
LAS VEGAS – Canelo Alvarez acknowledges that his showdown with Gennady Golovkin is “a 50-50 fight.”
Whoever wins, Alvarez is sure that boxing fans who’ve waited roughly two years to see them fight will be thoroughly entertained. The Mexican superstar is confident, too, that he and Golovkin can produce one of the most memorable battles in boxing history Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena.
Oscar De La Hoya, Alvarez’s promoter, has said he expects Alvarez-Golovkin to go down with the legendary three-round brawl between Marvin Hagler and Thomas Hearns in April 1985 as one of the most compelling middleweight title fights ever. Alvarez (49-1-1, 34 KOs) didn’t make any such comparisons Wednesday, but he told a group of reporters prior to a press conference at MGM Grand that he expects he and Golovkin (37-0, 33 KOs) to deliver an unforgettable fight.
“Because of styles,” Alvarez said through a translator. “He has a very aggressive style. He comes to search and destroy. He comes in search of the knockout. You know me – I don’t back down. I’m a counter-puncher, I like to fight and I think it’s a no-miss. Because of the styles, it has all the ingredients to be one of the best fights ever.”
If it’s that type of fight, Alvarez envisions a rematch, perhaps immediately.
The rematch clause in their contracts calls for Golovkin, 35, to give Alvarez, 27, a rematch if Golovkin wins. Alvarez, however, won’t owe Golovkin a rematch if he wins their 12-round fight for Golovkin’s IBF, IBO, WBA and WBC middleweight titles.
“It all depends on how the first fight goes before we can talk about a second fight,” Alvarez said. “But if the fans, if the people wanna see it, I have no problem to do it right away. Time restraints won’t be an issue.”
The Golovkin-Alvarez fight will headline HBO Pay-Per-View’s four-fight broadcast Saturday night (8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT; $79.99 in HD).
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.