Canelo vs GGG Preview
The trilogy fight everyone has been waiting for is going down Saturday September 17 in Las Vegas at the T-Mobile Arena. Canelo Alvarez will be defending his WBC, WBA, WBO and IBF super middleweight titles against middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin.
The two champions previously fought in 2017 and 2018 with the first fight ending in a controversial split draw, and the second battle Alvarez winning by majority decision. The win for Alvarez in the second fight earned him the WBA (super), WBC and IBO middleweight titles, but the decision was a much disputed victory in the boxing community. The Mexican fighter then moved up in weight twice to gain titles at super middleweight and light heavyweight.
Alvarez (57-2-2, 39 KO) is trying to rebound from his last fight in which he challenged for the WBA (Super) light heavyweight title but lost by unanimous decision to Dmitry Bivol in May. Prior to that he had not lost a fight since 2013 where he lost a majority decision to Floyd Mayweather.
The Mexican fighter is ready to move on from his last loss and prove that he has what it takes to finish Golovkin. "I'm going to hit him to the body a lot. That's one of my best punches, to the body," Canelo said.
"I'm going to work whatever it takes, head, body, but my goal is to finish this fight before round 12, so I'm going to do whatever it takes in the ring.
Alvarez thought that the rivalry ended with his win in the second fight but understands this third fight with GGG is for his legacy but more importantly for the fans. 'I think we had a really good two fights,' he said. 'People want the three fights.
'For me in my mind, at the end of the second fight, that was the end of the fights with Golovkin. It's enough. But the people want to know who is the best.”
The 32-year-old went on to say, “He always says I'm not a good champion, I'm embarrassing for my country, but when he is in front of me he doesn't say anything. That's why I'm mad.
He's a good, difficult, strong fighter. One of the greatest of all time. Our styles are perfect for a good fight. I think I'm more mature, more strong, have good experience, and I'm in my prime. That is going to be the difference.
I think it is going to be a good fight, but my goal is to end the fight before the 12 rounds. Nobody likes to lose but losing is not an option for me.”
Aside from Golovkin, Alvarez has key victories in his career over Caleb Plant, Billy Joe Saunders, Callum Smith, Sergey Kovalev, Daniel Jacobs, Liam Smith, Amir Khan, Miguel Cotto, Erislandy Lara, Austin Trout, Shane Mosley and Kermit Cintron.
Golovkin’s only loss of his career (42-1-1, 37 KO) came at the hands of Alvarez and since then he has won four straight fights. He most recently defeated Ryota Murata in April by ninth round TKO to win the WBA (Super) middleweight title. The fight on Thursday will be the first time in the 40-year-olds career he will be fighting at 168 pounds. The unified middleweight champion knows he still has a tough challenge with Alvarez as he claims he hit him harder than he has ever been hit before in his career.
“He’s a powerful fighter, no doubt about that, and we saw that in different fights, and he didn’t manage to do that in our first two fights,” said Golovkin.
“I can only hope this fight will go down as one of the best fights in history. I hope this fight is interesting, and I hope I win,” said a modest Golovkin when asked if he wins whether he would feel that he won the three fights with Canelo.”
Golovkin went on to say, “I’m just a human with two legs and two arms,” said Golovkin when asked if he’s still the same fighter he once was. “People who are 40 and are in my shoes understand how I feel now. Younger athletes, maybe not yet, but those who turned 40 know exactly what I’m talking about.
“Easier said than done,” said Golovkin when asked if he wanted to take it out of the judges’ hands by knocking out Canelo.
“Of course, hypothetically, it’s clear on paper. ‘Let’s score a knockout. Let’s take it out of the judges’ hands,’ but at this level with these opponents for this fight, it’s a very hard thing to do,” said Golovkin.
Aside from Murata, Golovkin has key wins in his career over Sergiy Derevyanchenko, Vanes Martirosyan, Daniel Jacobs, Kell Brook, David Lemieux, Willie Monroe Jr, Martin Murray and Marco Antonio Rubio. A win over Alvarez would revitalize the Kazakhstani fighters career and prove that he is still has a long way to go despite being 40 years old.
The fight can be seen on DAZN PPV.
