By Steve Kim
Last February 18th, Gennady Golovkin's father (Gennady Ivanovich Golovkin) passed away suddenly of a heart attack at the age of 68. With the ritual 40-day mourning period of Kazakhstan, his upcoming bout with Andy Lee (that was scheduled for the Madison Square Garden on April 26th) was cancelled.
According to his trainer, Abel Sanchez, Golovkin came back a different person.
"I think the beginning of this last year was a big change for him mentally. His father passed away, next time in camp I saw a different guy. I saw a more grown-up guy, a guy that understands his responsibility, not only inside the ring but now outside the ring," explained the veteran trainer, who is now preparing him for his next bout on February 21st in Monaco against Martin Murray. Golovkin is 32 years old and recently moved to Los Angeles.
"He's the patriarch of the family, now," continued Sanchez to BoxingScene.com," and I think his goal, his purpose and his direction is dramatically changed in his mind."
Steve Kim is the news editor for BoxingScene.com.
