A major fight in the world of boxing is on, and unlike the fight between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao, which you had to wait for, you do not have to wait five years for this one.
Yes, it took a while, but finally Gennady Golovkin the United middleweight world champ and Canelo Alvarez – who is like boxing's leading star -- will be meeting to contend for Golovkin's unified titles. This is the fight of the year and has been in demand for more than one year now.
The announcement of the fight being signed came shortly after Alvarez won Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. In a bitter Mexican fight that took place on Saturday night in the T-Mobile Arena with a crowd of about 20,501. Alvarez won on all the three score cards with 120-108.
The fight between Alvarez and Golovkin will take place on the Mexican Independence Day weekend which is September 16 –The location is yet to be chosen.
Oscar De La Hoya who is the CEO Golden Boy Promotions mentioned at the after fight news conference that he has had several calls from all over the world for this fight can be staged. He spoke about getting calls from UK, Dubai and all around the world. He also mentioned that the negotiations and talks to achieve this would begin over the coming weeks. Oscar says this will be the most anticipated fight just like the Floyd Mayweather-Manny Pacquiao fight, only that this will involve a nonstop action.
De La Hoya and Alvarez said they would arrange a fight for last may, but they didn’t eventually; Alvarez even gave up his 160-pound belt just to avoid a compulsory fight with Golovkin, who had a temporary belt along with his full titles at this time. He also got Alvarez's belt.
Now it is a year down the line, and the fight is finally on. Alvarez, who challenged Chavez at a weight of 164.5 pounds, will now be fighting Golovkin at a weight of 160 pounds even after previously turning down middleweight title fights with bouts heavier than 155 pounds.
Tom Loeffler, the managing director of K2 Promotions who is also Golovkin's promoter, said they were true to their word when they said the fight would be staged in September 2017, because they have finally made the announcement.
In as much as a bigger fight with Golovkin (37-0, 33 KOs), 35, was signed in secret, Alvarez (49-1-1, 34 KOs), 26, who is a previous two-time world title holder of the junior middleweight, said he did not lose his focus on the fight with Chavez. He said he considers himself as someone with a high mental strength and he had to focus. Alvarez said he knew that he had to win the fight with Chavez and he proofed that he could.
Golovkin, who is an indigene of Kazakhstan residing in Santa Monica, California, and Alvarez were excited that the fight was finally scheduled.
Alvarez said he is so glad to give his fans another exciting fight as this is what he wants his career to be about. He mentioned that he has the techniques and that they would fit together as this is what he is personally bringing to the table.
Golovkin, who is an eighteen-time title defender, has an upcoming fight against Daniel Jacobs scheduled for March 18. This is a tight decision win, and Golovkin looks a little vulnerable.
Just after answering questions on the fight with Chavez, Golovkin said when he appeared at the news conference with Alvarez that most people know the fight is a tough one for both of them, but he respected Alvarez’s team. He noted that this is an amazing fight wanted by everyone.
De La Hoya said even though negotiations had started and stopped at some point, it wasn’t that difficult to bring it to a close eventually.
De La Hoya said it was great working with the Triple G side i.e. Golovkin's camp. He mentioned that the negotiations went back and forth which is no big deal as big fights sometimes take the time to bring to a close. He said the negotiations took some weeks after it started for them to make a decision especially since they paused the negotiations for about a month. However, a decision was made a few days ago.
He said they are tremendously happy to have the fight with Triple G staged for people in September, as this will no doubt be one of the biggest fights anticipated up till date. He noted that having fighters who want to be a part of a big fight makes everything easier. De La Hoya said that boxing has returned; it is bigger and better with ups and downs just like a roller coaster. He believes that this is a great moment in the world of boxing and will be spoken of for a long time.