By Edward Chaykovsky
IBO/IBF/WBC/WBA middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin (35-0, 32KOs) admits he was shocked when first going face to face with IBF welterweight champion Kell Brook (36-0, 25KOs).
The pair are scheduled to fight on September 10th at the O2 Arena in London. Brook is moving up by 13 pounds to take the fight.
When the fight was first announced, it received a lot of criticism and still continues to do so. Many believe Brook will be undersized by the middleweight king who knocked out his last 22 opponents.
Brook and Golovkin are not far apart in height, with an inch separating them. Brook is well known to be struggling to make the welterweight limit and is likely better suited for the junior middleweight ranks.
Many fear the contest will end up in the same manner as the May showdown between Amir Khan and Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez. Brook's rival, Khan, moved up to a catch-weight of 155-pounds to challenge Canelo, who at the time held the WBC middleweight title. While Khan did well at the start, he was eventually knocked out in brutal fashion in the sixth round.
Golovkin brushes aside any mismatch claims. He views the bout as a real fight with a challenger who is just as big as any middleweight.
"The first time I looked at him I thought: 'Wow! 147? No way!'," Golovkin told Sky Sports News HQ. "He is my size, like he's at 160. I am not a big guy so it is very close for us. Right now I realise he is a true test and the biggest test for us."
"It's a big present for me but now I realise this is a big present for everyone. This is the biggest test for me. It is not a big difference because he is the same size, he's strong and I think he has a different boxing style and speed - but there isn't a lot of difference."
