WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao has given IBF, IBO, WBA, WBC middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin (37-0, 33 KOs) the edge to defeat Saul "Canelo" Alvarez (49-1, 34 KOs), who officially makes his move to 160-pounds.
The fight between Golovkin and Canelo takes place on September 16th at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Pacquiao himself will return to action later tonight in Australia, when he defends his world title against Jeff Horn at the Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane.
Pacquiao is very familiar with both Golovkin and Canelo. At one time his team was actually mulling the possibility of a catch-weight bout with Canelo.
"I watch boxing, I enjoy watching GGG, Canelo. It will be a good fight, it will be a tough fight, but GGG has the advantage with power and aggression. We do not know if it's going to be by points or a knockout, but [either of] the two are good," said Pacquiao.
Two weeks ago, Pacquiao's head trainer Freddie Roach also gave his take on the contest.
There was a time when Roach tabbed Golovkin as the heavy favorite to walk right through Canelo with a devastating knockout. But Roach's opinion has greatly changed after Golovkin, now 35-years-old, began to show some vulnerabilities in his two most recent outings. After stopping 23 opponents in a row, Golovkin was forced to go the full twelve round distance back in March when he secured a close points win over Daniel Jacobs.
Roach now views the fight as a 50-50 proposition.
"At one time everyone thought that Golovkin would kill him and so forth, but I don’t think people think that anymore. Alvarez has become a pretty good fighter and he’s really progressed in his career, he’s gotten better and better every fight. He looked great in his last fight and I think him and Golovkin are dead even at this point," Roach told On The Ropes Boxing Radio.
