By Edward Chaykovsky
Veteran trainer Ronnie Shields has two world champions in his stable, both at junior middleweight, and both of them are making noise about heading up to the middleweight limit.
WBA/IBO champion Erislandy Lara and IBF champion Jermall Charlo are both discussing the idea of moving up to 160-pounds in 2017.
Both boxers have expressed their interest in facing IBF, IBO, WBA, WBC middleweight king Gennady 'GGG' Golovkin (36-0, 33 KOs).
Shields gives both of his boxers a very good shot at handing Golovkin his first career defeat. Golovkin returns on March 18th, when he makes a mandatory defense against Daniel Jacobs at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
"I think they both have a great chance. With Lara being on the outside using his boxing skills he would definitely give ‘GGG’ a lot of problems. With Jermall, the strong jab and the power that he has, he would definitely get the attention of ‘GGG’ also. It’s two different styles but I think both of them have the capabilities to win," Shields told On The Ropes Boxing Radio.
In his most recent win on Friday, an easy knockout of former world champion Yuri Foreman, Lara called for a fight with Golovkin. According to Shields, Lara is very serious in his pursuit to get Golovkin in the ring.
"Golovkin is a great fighter, you can’t take anything away from him, but Lara is the kind of guy that tests his skills against the best that’s out there. Lara knows that ‘GGG’ is the best at 160lbs, so he wants to match his skills against the best guys that are out there. This is what this sport is supposed to be about, the best fighting the best. Lara is definitely one of the best fighters out there, so he wants to match his skills against other guys that are potentially the best in the world," Shields said.
