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In a recent interview on ESPN Deportes, Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (49-1-1, 34 KOs) stated that he is confident that his clash against Gennady “GGG” Golovkin (37-0, 33 KOs) will end in a knockout of his opponent.
The mega fight between these formidable middleweights will take place on September 16 in an already sold out T-mobile Arena in Las Vegas, NV.
In the Interview with ESPN Deportes, Alvarez stated that it would be difficult for both fighters to let this bout end by decision. Perhaps he is making a reference to recent events involving poor judging in the sport, which cost Manny Pacquiao a victory against Australia’s Jeff Horn.
Perhaps Canelo is also hinting that in terms of style, he is anticipating a high contact fight where both boxers are going to trade punches in close, which would lead to that knockout.
To make a case for Canelo, there have been some sportswriters of late that feel Golovkin is on a decline and they use his last two fights as proof.
Against Kell Brook, Golovkin experienced some struggles in that fight before forcing a fifth round stoppage. Against Daniel Jacobs, Golovkin had trouble imposing his rhythm and the fight ended up going the distance, which snapped Golovkin’s streak of 23 consecutive knockout wins.
The Canelo camp seems to be hedging their bets that Golovkin at age 35 is not the dominant fighter with power that he once was. Maybe that’s the main reason why this fight is actually happening, because GGG is no longer a threat to Canelo.
Maybe team Canelo used the same strategy that team Mayweather Jr. did when they waited for Pacquiao to show signs of aging before taking on that fight.
For Canelo, this fight is the most important one in his 14 years as a professional and he is determined to give his fans a knockout victory to cement his legacy. The date of Alvarez vs. Golovkin is also symbolic since it will be held on Mexican Independence Day weekend, which means higher pay-per-view sales and bragging rights for Canelo, should he pull out a win against Golovkin.
With Mexican style boxing on display, we should be treated to a good fight from two technically sound operators, who both have enough power to turn this one into Ring Magazine’s Fight of the Year.
