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GGG and Jacobs to attend Ward-Kov as talks progress

Fighters Network
18
Nov

Gennady Golovkin and mandatory challenger Danny Jacobs are both set to attend Saturday’s light heavyweight championship between Sergey Kovalev and Andre Ward in Las Vegas, RingTV.com has learned.

“We heard GGG was going to be out here,” Keith Connolly, who advises Jacobs, told RingTV.com on Friday from Vegas. “We’re looking forward to seeing him.”

Rather than appearing as a way to build momentum to face the winner of Saturday’s fight on HBO PPV, Golovkin (36-0, 33 knockouts) and Jacobs remain locked in negotiations to face off in the first quarter of 2017. While the two sides have been haggling for over a month, talks have progressed to the point where March is now being mentioned as a possible end point for the fight, according to Connolly.

“It seems like we’re getting closer,” Tom Loeffler, who promotes Golovkin, told RingTV.com on Friday. “We’re still in negotiations, same as before. Still, if we didn’t think the fight would happen we wouldn’t be having these discussions. From every indication I’ve heard, Danny wants the fight.”



The holdup appears to be centered around money, according to Showtime boxing chief Stephen Espinoza, who is close with Jacobs’ powerful advisor, Al Haymon and wants the fight on his network. “What I’ve heard is there’s still no meeting of the minds on revenue splits,” Espinoza told RingTV.com on Wednesday. “It’s not a complicated issue. It could get solved any day. But there’s always that purse bid process that’s looming. The good thing is I think one way or the other it will come to a resolution. It’s a little bit of a waiting game but at least we know there’s an end in sight.”

Jacobs (32-1, 29 KOs) trekked from Brooklyn to Las Vegas to drum up attention for their fight. Golovkin, who is signed with HBO and has been in Big Bear working out, was invited by the network giant to attend. “We think the fight could take place in March,” Connolly said. “Danny is looking forward to proving he’s the best middleweight in the world.”

The WBA seems to have left the sides alone to hash out the details and hasn’t ordered a date for a purse bid, Loeffler said. Golovkin, 34, holds the IBF, WBA and WBC middleweight titles and Jacobs, 29, is his WBA mandatory and the bearer of a secondary title. The sides have been trying to broker a deal ever since Golovkin stopped Kell Brook on Sept. 10. WBA president Gilberto Mendoza didn’t immediately return an email for comment.

“It’s still one of the best fights that can be made in boxing,” Loeffler said. “It’s the No. 1 versus the No. 2 middleweight in the division. Both guys have very fan-friendly styles. It’s a great fight for the fans.”

 

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