It’s rare for a boxer to compete in one weight class for the entirety of a career, but that’s exactly what 40-year-old Gennadiy Golovkin has done.
Ever since turning professional in 2006 after winning a silver medal in the 2004 Olympics in the 75-kilogram weight class, Golovkin (42-1-1, 37 KOs) has fought exclusively as a middleweight in 44 fights.
Golovkin is currently the IBF and WBA champion at 160 pounds, but he will step up in weight for the first time in his career and fight at 168 pounds in a trilogy bout against Canelo Alvarez on Sept. 17 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on DAZN pay per view.
Triple G is not envisioning any issues fighting for the first time as a super middleweight.
“It is the same. I feel absolutely comfortable. For me, I’ll be honest with you, it’s just another fight – just another opponent. I’ve been asking myself, ‘do I feel different?’ The answer is ‘no.’ I feel 100% comfortable even in a new weight division,” Golovkin told BoxingScene.com.
Golovkin has been a knockout artist throughout this career to the tune of an 84% KO ratio. When asked if his power will carry over to a new weight class, Golovkin appeared to sound uncertain.
“We’ll see. I believe so. But we’ll be in a new situation. We need to try ourselves out,” said Golovkin.
“It’s hard for me to say right now because this will be my first time fighting at 168. We’re going to prepare and do everything we can to get ready for the weight class, but no predictions.
“Fighting at 160 has its pros and cons, and of course, 168 won’t be as tough to make.
Golovkin and Alvarez fought for 24 rounds and each fighter showcased granite chins. No knockdowns were scored, and neither fighter was seriously hurt in the 2017 matchup that ended in a split draw and the 2018 fight that finished with Alvarez scoring a majority decision.
“Boxers at this level are really hard punchers. You don’t realize how hard it is until you get punched,” said Golovkin.
“I don’t know Canelo at 168. I know him at 160. There is a reason this fight is not at 160. I learned something about him. He learned something about himself at 160. Now we’re going to try at 168.”
The third fight is four years in the making.
Since the sequel, Alvarez (57-2-2, 39 KOs) – the undisputed super middleweight champion – has fought just one more time at 160 pounds in 2019 against Daniel Jacobs.
Alvarez also has fought twice as a light heavyweight, the weight division of his most recent fight in May that ended in a decision loss to Dmitry Bivol.
Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist, writer and broadcast reporter. He’s also a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and MMA Journalists Association. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan, via email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com or on www.ManoukAkopyan.com.
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