What Should Gennady Golovkin Do Next?

[ИATAS]

I saw an interview with Warren and Saunders on IFL in January saying the offer was good but it wasn't enough. Warren actually had a good explanition as to how the fight could be made. Then Saunders said it was $1.5 mil. Nobody has said anything differently and K2 never said how much they offered.

Again, Warren and Saunders are saying this. K2 said they offered a signficant amount, more than $1.5 million. Now, if you're taking everything Saunders says as fact, he has said he wants at least $3-$4 million to fight Golovkin. Is that realistic? Nope. He's pricing himself out. There is nothing anyone can to do to get that kind of money to Billy Joe Saunders, UK or US. He's not a name here or in the UK. It is what it is. Showtime, HBO, NBC, The Christian channel, whatever, no one is going to pay saunders 3-4 million.

I see Showtime spending more money on their cards than HBO is spending now. Showtime is investing in boxing.

They are? OK

It doesn't hurt to entertain offers from others. It's worked for Floyd, Tyson, Lewis, Pacquiao, and many others.

It doesn't hurt to entertain offers, I never said otherwise. I just don't see how going to Showtime is going to help matters. He's going to be in the same boat. I don't care one way or the other, which ever path leads to the big fights then great, go with that path.

Canelo doesn't want to fight GGG. They won't even put anything on paper. So what's plan B for GGG? I don't think my idea is crazy because it's been done so many times before. Also what's the endgame for GGG? Is it Canelo or bust?

Canelo was never the endgame to start with, just a big fight that was supposed to be a unification fight and for the lineal crown. What is GGG's endgame? What is anyone's endgame in boxing? Fight as long as you can, win as long as you can and hopefully make some good money in the process and have decent legacy when it's all said & done. For GGG, I think he would still love to unify and get that last belt (not sure about the lineal belt though and how that will work if Canelo does move back to 154...) and fight the biggest names possible. Unfortunately, there are no real big names down or above him at the moment besides Canelo. There are no big stars at 154, 160, 168 other than Canelo & Golovkin. I can only speculate on what he'll do (again, I think he'll go after Saunders/Eubank/Jacobs and if Canelo still isn't ready May 2016 he'll move up to 168 for the biggest fight possible).

[Motorcity Cobra]

Again, Warren and Saunders are saying this. K2 said they offered a signficant amount, more than $1.5 million. Now, if you're taking everything Saunders says as fact, he has said he wants at least $3-$4 million to fight Golovkin. Is that realistic? Nope. He's pricing himself out. There is nothing anyone can to do to get that kind of money to Billy Joe Saunders, UK or US. He's not a name here or in the UK. It is what it is. Showtime, HBO, NBC, The Christian channel, whatever, no one is going to pay saunders 3-4 million.

I need that article because a couple months back I was telling somebody the same thing and BJS was ducking and went to find an article stating how much they offered and couldn't find anything. That's why I changed my mind on BJS ducking.

They are? OK

Yes, and they offered Arum more for the Walters-Lomachenko fight but Arum didn't want to move the date

It doesn't hurt to entertain offers, I never said otherwise. I just don't see how going to Showtime is going to help matters. He's going to be in the same boat. I don't care one way or the other, which ever path leads to the big fights then great, go with that path.

It helps matters because they're willing to spend money. I'm going to say it again and I hope you really think about what I'm saying. GGG is the middleweight champ with 3 of the 4 belts. He sells out arenas from coast to coast. But he's going to the UK to fight on a Matchroom card against a fighter who has never held a world title. HBO doesn't have the money to make that fight here. Loeffler doesn't want to risk paying for it, putting it on PPV and doing horrible PPV numbers. They got burned the last time they tried that.

Canelo was never the endgame to start with, just a big fight that was supposed to be a unification fight and for the lineal crown. What is GGG's endgame? What is anyone's endgame in boxing? Fight as long as you can, win as long as you can and hopefully make some good money in the process and have decent legacy when it's all said & done. For GGG, I think he would still love to unify and get that last belt (not sure about the lineal belt though and how that will work if Canelo does move back to 154...) and fight the biggest names possible. Unfortunately, there are no real big names down or above him at the moment besides Canelo. There are no big stars at 154, 160, 168 other than Canelo & Golovkin. I can only speculate on what he'll do (again, I think he'll go after Saunders/Eubank/Jacobs and if Canelo still isn't ready May 2016 he'll move up to 168 for the biggest fight possible).

And where is this money going to come from to get Jacobs and BJS? Stay with HBO and fight Zurdo at 168 and then what? Try to negotiate a catchweight with the winner of Kovalev vs Ward? Or as I suggested, go to Showtime and you have Jacobs and BJS at 160. Or DeGale and Jack at 168. By the end of 2017 at least two of the Junior MW's would have moved up. And even looking at the prospects from 154-168 they're all on Showtime's side of the street.

My scenarios may seem far fetched but I think they're just as possible as a fight with Canelo in Sept 2017.

[BostonGuy]

lara has never fought at 160, and has a loss to canelo alvarez. he's also got a draw with vanes, a draw with molina that could easily be a molina win, and he got knocked aroudn the ring by alfredo freaking angulo prior to the stoppage.


that's not a better win than martin murray, who could easily have been the MW champion of the world when he fought golovkin. or lemieux, a contender at 160 lbs [instead of 154,] with knockout punching power.


there have been cases where one could argue that a fighter from a weight class below would be the best opponent a champion from the weight above has faced, but typically those are discussions of legit pound for pound fighters, or a case where the smaller fighter is the higher ranked p4p fighter.


lara isn't close to the p4p list. if you've got him there you're not even looking as far back as 2014, when he didn't do enough to beat canelo, even when canelo didn't do much at all himself.


people bring lara up as a boogyman. in part because he's a guy golovkin can't fight, or at least it's a fight that's going to be tough to make.

make no mistake, hbo and k2 would sign that fight tomrorow if lara took the 100K willie monroe took, or even the 500K that dominic wade took. the problem is that lara and his people aren't going to take that kind of money to fight golovkin. you need a willie wade for that now that golovkin is commanding high ratings and earning more than a million dollars for a regular hbo fight.


if you want to see lara - golovkin it will be on PPV. don't know what kind of obligation lara has to showtime, but golovkin has an obligation to HBO by all accounts. at the very least, he's obligated to them in the sense that on hbo is where the biggest fight in boxing is goign to happen, the focus of golovkin's career under any sound business plan, a fight with canelo in 2017.

The problem is, we're in mid 2016 with no viable opponents on the horizon for Golovkin. Jacobs doesn't want to fight 'em, Sanders has priced himself out, Canelo is out and Cotto is damaged goods - maybe Andy Lee?

Gennady is in his prime right now and it seems like he's wasting it fighting unknowns guys who don't pose any threat to him. He's a superstar but he doesn't have a credible dance partner. At least with Lara, I think boxing fans embrace that fight - whether that's warranted or not.

[BrometheusBob.]

Eubank is OK for now and hopefully he gets Jacobs or Saunders after. I don't mind the top 154 guys either.

Chances are low that he'll move up soon - 1 because doing so essentially dissolves any possibility of a Canelo fight (which pays the most) and - 2 because there aren't really established names there. If he does move up the DeGale/Jack winner is an excellent fight to take.

[soul_survivor]

The only major fights at 160 are Canelo, Jacobs and Saunders, none of which will happen this year. He turns 35 next year and father time is undefeated in boxing. His options include:

1. Camp out at 160 and fight fringe contenders and up and comers until the big fights come along.

What I like about this

This option keeps him the most active, allows him to continue to chase the record for MW title defenses and will put pressure on the other top fighters to make the big fight happen. Plus a fight with Eubank will increase his name recognition in the UK which could potentially get Saunders the ridiculous dollars he's looking for.

What I dislike about this

His recent level of opposition has been subpar and I cannot stand to see another Dominic Wade/Willie Monroe Jr. type opponent. Also, at age 35, father time will catch him at some point and I would hate to see the career of a fighter of this caliber be controlled by Canelo.


2. Go after some top fighters at 154 such as Lara, Andrade and the Charlos.

What I like about this

There was a point in time where these junior divisions did not exist. Their existence has really watered down the sport. Imagine how strong a combined 154/160 division would be. To me, these wins enhance his resume against higher caliber of opposition than exists at 160.

What I dislike about this

Even if he beats a top fighter at 154 he will not receive full credit for beating up on a smaller guy moving up in weight.

3. Move up to 168

What I like about this

Many of the ATG's of the past all moved up in weight and established themselves as elite fighters in several weight classes. Plus, fighters with size advantages may be more willing to fight him.

What I dislike about this

Since Ward left the division this move has become less intriguing. Outside of Jack and Degale, fighters are still mostly unproven (Zurdo), past prime (Abraham, Bute) or have already proven to be nothing more than fringe contenders (The Dirrels).

4.Shoot for the top

What I like about this

Challenging the winner of Ward/Kovalev would take balls and a victory would solidify ATG status.

What I don't like about this

I just don't think he can beat those guys and the risk is not worth the reward.



Thoughts?

You pretty much answered all the relevant questions yourself lol What's left to discuss?

Personally, I think his best option is to unify ALL the titles at middleweight which leaves just the WBO. That means the BJS fight next year, after the terrific Eubank Jr match up. Basically, the route Hopkins went down.

By the end of 2017, GGG would likely have had the Canelo fight and KOd him too. So he would have every middleweight belt and have beaten a money name.

After that, he can od as he please, stay and defend his championship, one of the few "true" championships in the sport or fight whoever the top SMW is at that time.

[ИATAS]

I need that article because a couple months back I was telling somebody the same thing and BJS was ducking and went to find an article stating how much they offered and couldn't find anything. That's why I changed my mind on BJS ducking.



Yes, and they offered Arum more for the Walters-Lomachenko fight but Arum didn't want to move the date






It helps matters because they're willing to spend money. I'm going to say it again and I hope you really think about what I'm saying. GGG is the middleweight champ with 3 of the 4 belts. He sells out arenas from coast to coast. But he's going to the UK to fight on a Matchroom card against a fighter who has never held a world title. HBO doesn't have the money to make that fight here. Loeffler doesn't want to risk paying for it, putting it on PPV and doing horrible PPV numbers. They got burned the last time they tried that.



And where is this money going to come from to get Jacobs and BJS? Stay with HBO and fight Zurdo at 168 and then what? Try to negotiate a catchweight with the winner of Kovalev vs Ward? Or as I suggested, go to Showtime and you have Jacobs and BJS at 160. Or DeGale and Jack at 168. By the end of 2017 at least two of the Junior MW's would have moved up. And even looking at the prospects from 154-168 they're all on Showtime's side of the street.

My scenarios may seem far fetched but I think they're just as possible as a fight with Canelo in Sept 2017.

Ok you keep saying if he goes to Showtime he can get those fights but where is the evidence that Showtime can fund those fights? Jacobs and Saunders are going to be the same issue - both want a lot of money, more money than they deserve, at least in Saunders case. Is Showtime going to put $7-$8 million dollars in purse money just for the main event for these fights? No way . It would have to be PPV, which is why I said it's the same boat.

That's the problem here. These decent fighters, Jacobs, Saunders, etc, they want a ton of cash to fight Golovkin, money that people/networks don't want to spend because they are only decent fighters without much of a name. It's the same problem if on HBO or Showtime. No one wants to pay $7-$8m in purse money for a non PPV event. Saunders was being over paid even with the low figure of $1.5m. It you believe K2, over $2m, that's way more than Saunders is worth. Golovkin himself has never made more than $2m so why should Saunders need double that without being a draw? Makes no sense.

[Chrismart]

I feel he should stay at 160. He should go along with things with the notion that the Canelo fight still may not happen in 2017. As to me, Canelo still isn't showing any signs he wants the fight.

Eubank is a good start. How many fights would we be talking about before the proposed Canelo fight..2 more? If that's the case. Eubank and Saunders/Jacobs would be ideal.

Obviously then the whole Haymon/HBO thing will rear it's head. As well as the fact that guys like BJS may want bigger larger realistic purses.
But ideally, if they can make MW fights like that, then that wouldn't be bad.

As for Canelo, i wouldn't be surprised to see him face Smith next. Lemieux at 160 would be decent penultimate fight to GGG.

I just hope both guys take decent fights in the mean-time, and that the fights can be made without any problems (which would probably be unlikely).

I will be disappointed if we see either guy take 'safe' fights as the proposed 2017 date gets nearer..as to be honest, i don't see Canelo Vs GGG happening anyway. And then the whole 'build up' starting as of now, would of been a waste of time.

[boliodogs]

I voted he should stay at his best and natural weight of 160 and fight the best middleweights who agree to fight him. He already probably has a nice, well paying fight coming up with high rated middleweight Eubanks Jr. For a 34 year smallish middleweight to move up a full 15 pounds to fight the winner of two great fighters, Kovalev and Ward is a bad idea and it's unfair to ask him to do so. He might well be a better fighter than either of them pound for pound but 15 pounds is way too much weight to give up to give up to boxers the quality of Kovalev and Ward..

[BostonGuy]

So, what's the answer to this question?

[BOXEO _]

Move up to 168 and fight Ramirez.

Jacobs and Canelo don't want none so what's the point in sticking around? He's not getting any younger.