Golovkin, Jacobs Have Firm October 10 Deadline, Says WBA Prez

By Miguel Rivera

Earlier this week, promoter Tom Loeffler of K2 Promotions revealed that he has already been negotiating the World Boxing Association mandatory bout between Gennady 'GGG' Golovkin (36-0, 34KOs) and Daniel Jacobs (32-1, 29KOs), tentatively scheduled for December 10 at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

According to WBA President Gilberto Mendoza Jr., the two boxers have until October 10th to reach an agreement of a purse bid will be called. They have 120 days to stage the fight.

"They have until October 10 to negotiate, what we know right now is that they are in talks," said Mendoza Jr. to ESPN Deportes.

The idea is to reach an agreement to avoid a purse bid. The problem, if there is one, is that Golovkin has an agreement with HBO to broadcast his fights, and if they do not reach an agreement or lose when contesting the auction, then Jacobs' manager/adviser Al Haymon would look to place the fight on one of the many networks that have deals with his Premier Boxing Champions series.

Jacobs, the mandatory challenger, has no problem with fighting on HBO if the monetary terms are substantial. Golovkin, who holds the WBA/IBO/WBC/IBF middleweight belts, wants to fight Jacobs sooner than later.

Golovkin was in action on September 10th, when he traveled over to the UK and stopped IBF welterweight champion Kell Brook in five rounds at the O2 Arena in London. The night prior, Jacobs retained his WBA 'regular' title with a knockout victory over former champion Sergio Mora in a rematch.