Friday, March 29, 2024  |

News

Aficianado

Will Gennady Golovkin watch Canelo vs. Chavez?

Photo credit: Chris Farina
Fighters Network
04
May

We media can be such pains in the butt. We have one eye trained on the matter at hand and both ears and the other eye looking beyond, at what might come next.

Case in point: On Saturday night, Canelo Alvarez fights Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in what some are saying is the most meaningful Mexican versus Mexican prizefights for the ages. Maybe revenue-wise, that is so…

But so many of us, the writers – and I dare say also you, the fans – are looking beyond Saturday.

If and when Canelo wins this 164.5-pound catchweight contest, fans are hoping he signs on to see who the king of the real deal middleweights is. No catchweight tomfoolery, THE RING Magazine champion Canelo, the legend in the making, versus IBF/WBA/WBC titlist Gennady Golovkin, the baby-faced assassin, who, now, at age 35, has shown signs that his days as the young-ish gun slaying up-and-comers is over. He will likely now have to work harder to get the “W,” if we are judging from his last two showings, in which IBF welterweight titleholder Kell Brook might have showed that “GGG’s” reflexes have dimmed a quarter-notch, and Danny Jacobs might have revealed that Golovkin’s stamina reservoir isn’t what it was when he was 30.



September, in what city, stadium or arena, it doesn’t much matter to any of us. Of course it does to the planners and the principals, who know there are a tiny handful of known stars in the pugilistic sphere and only but a few pairings will excite the masses into a buying frenzy, which translates to beefy buy rates for pay-per-view. Don’t believe me? Why do you think Floyd Mayweather Jr. has flirted with fighting UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor for his 50th pro win?

Back to the nearer future…

If and when Canelo wins, by KO, or by decision, his people at Golden Boy Promotions will say it is GGG target time. Canelo vs. GGG, in September, they say. Of course, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. dreams of screwing up those plans, dropping and stopping Canelo and halting his momentum train dead. It could happen; stranger things have. We elected a reality TV star/real estate magnate to run this nation, stranger things indeed…

So, as for Golovkin, and his thoughts on the matter, I asked his promoter, K2 Promotions’ Tom Loeffler, if the fighting pride of Kazakhstan, who now makes California his home, would be on site at the T-Mobile Arena Saturday, rooting on Canelo to get the victory and scouting his next foe. And where does Team GGG stand with regard to his next fight?

“He’s not planning to go,” Loeffler answered. “As of now, we are aiming for his next fight to take place in the fall, most likely in September.”

And would GGG entertain a tango with Junior, if the son of the legend pulled off this pretty massive upset? “We would look to make the biggest fight possible, depending on who is available and who actually agrees to fight (Golovkin),” Loeffler finished.

My take: Twitter tells me lots of fans are thinking Canelo does something else other than fight GGG, if and when he beats Junior. Me, I think Canelo and company would be negotiating furiously to grab every bit of leverage while deal-making with Loeffler but the time would be now to do this thing – and it will get made for the fall. Their capital, their remaining goodwill, it isn’t what it used to be because some fans believe Canelo the Mexican warrior should have already gloved up against GGG, not let his body grow into 160 or whatever the explanation was. Half of me doesn’t disagree but the other half of me tips a cap to Golden Boy CEO Oscar De La Hoya for kicking the can down the road, that same road all of us travel down and which finds us plucking more gray hairs from our scalp the longer we travel. Most of us think GGG isn’t immune to being plucked. If Canelo slays Junior Saturday, his profile increases and he’s seen in many circles as a favorite against GGG, when they clash.

If and when…

 

 

 

 

If and when Michael Woods stops writing “If and when…,” odds are he’ll likely start writing, “When and if…” If and when this occurs, RingTV.com will be first on the scene with the news.

 

 

 

 

 

Struggling to locate a copy of THE RING Magazine? Try here or…

SUBSCRIBE

You can subscribe to the print and digital editions of THE RING Magazine by clicking the banner or here. You can also order the current issue, which is on newsstands, or back issues from our subscribe page. On the cover this month: Canelo vs. Chavez Jr. – Mano A Mano.

SIGN UP TO GET RING NEWS ALERTS