Gennadiy Golovkin 42-1-1 (37) has admitted it will be hard to knock out Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez 57-2-2 (39) when they meet for a third time at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The 40-year-old Kazakh puncher was unable to put a dent in Alvarez in their previous 24 rounds. Their first fight in September 2017 ended in disputed split draw and their rematch one year later went to Alvarez via majority decision.
In an interview with Morning Kombat, Golovkin was asked whether he thought he could finish off Alvarez inside the distance.
“Easier said than done,” WBA and IBF middleweight champion Golovkin said. “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.”
Mexican superstar Alvarez, 32, is coming off a unanimous decision loss to WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol 20-0 (11) in May. The scores were 115-113 across the board but many observers felt the cards should have been wider for the undefeated Russian.
Alvarez will move back down to super middleweight to defend his WBC, WBA, WBO and IBF super middleweight titles against Golovkin.
Golovkin says there is no doubt that Alvarez hits hard, but he backs his chin to withstand anything the undisputed 168-pound champion throws at him.
“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,” Golovkin said.
“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.”
Golovkin is coming off a ninth-round stoppage of Ryota Murata in Japan in April. He looked a shadow of his former self through the first four rounds, getting hit cleanly more often than usual. But by the fifth round Golovkin – who was having his first fight in 16 months – found his groove and broke Murata down.
How much of that showing was down to ring rust or age remains open to dispute, but Golovkin revealed Father Time is having at least some impact on how he feels.
“I’m just a human with two legs and two arms,” Golovkin said. “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.”
This fight will be the first time Golovkin has faced Alvarez with trainer Johnathon Banks in his corner after he split ways with Abel Sanchez in the aftermath of his rematch loss.
“JB was able to bring what the school of Kronk Gym has to offer and he showed me. I’m a different boxer than I used to be, and I’m very happy about it,” Golovkin said.
“It’s hard for me to say what needs to be changed because it does not depend on me. Of course, I know I need to get in the ring and show the best of me, the best of boxing.
“At the same time, we’re talking about the human factor here. We’re talking about honesty and fairness with judges. Sometimes you need to be head and shoulders above your opponent to deliver a victory by scoring, as the last fight [between Alvarez and Bivol] showed.
“You saw the scores and they did not reflect what we saw in the ring. It was not as close as the scores. We’re talking about human factors here.”