LAS VEGAS – If Canelo Alvarez actually considers Gennadiy Golovkin a faded, 40-year-old shell of what his rival once was, it wouldn’t behoove the Mexican legend to point that out while he is trying to boost pay-per-view and ticket sales for their third showdown.
Alvarez has instead stated throughout the buildup toward their long-awaited third fight that Golovkin looks like the same ferocious fighter to him, that he expects another difficult fight in the completion of their trilogy. The four-division champion admits, however, that the fact that he remains in his physical prime, eight years younger than Golovkin, will help separate them in their DAZN Pay-Per-View main event Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena ($64.99 for subscribers; $84.99 for non-subscribers).
The 32-year-old Alvarez also feels as though he is a more complete fighter than when he won their 12-round rematch by majority decision nearly four years ago at T-Mobile Arena.
“I think I’m more mature, with more experience, more strong,” Alvarez told a small group of reporters Tuesday following their “grand arrivals” at MGM Grand. “I’m in my prime right now. I think that’s gonna be the difference.”
Golovkin has boxed just four times in the four years since their second middleweight title fight. Alvarez has fought eight times since their September 2018 bout and won world titles in two more weight classes, but he recognizes that Golovkin deserves his respect, despite that the Kazakhstan native will make his debut at the super middleweight maximum of 168 pounds.
“It’s a dangerous fight for me, too, because he’s a really good fighter,” Alvarez said. “He’s still strong. I take this very seriously and I trained hard. I trained my best and I just come to win, like every fight.”
The Guadalajara native also downplayed Golovkin’s age.
“I don’t think it has anything to do with it. In this particular fight, genetically he’s strong,” Alvarez said. “He looks after himself. [Age] might affect certain things, but for me, particularly in this fight, I don’t think it will have an effect.”
Alvarez (57-2-2, 39 KOs) and Golovkin (42-1-1, 37 KOs) will fight for the IBF, WBA, WBC and WBO super middleweight titles Alvarez owns. If Golovkin wins a fight in which most sportsbooks have installed Alvarez as at least a 5-1 favorite, he would become boxing’s undisputed champion in the 168-pound division, something he hasn’t accomplished during his highly successful run as a middleweight.
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.