FOR 12 rounds, middleweights Gennady “GGG” Golovkin and Saul “Canelo” Alvarez waged a brutal, albeit tactical, fight that was nothing less than a work of art for boxing purists. Arguably, the majority decision awarded to Alvarez left a bad taste in the mouths of some fans, but on the flip side it may have set up the perfect platform for a third match between the two proud “glovediators.”
Alvarez was the aggressive fighter, abandoning his cautious counterpuncher approach in the first fight to play the role of a stalker, pressure fighter in the encore. Golovkin came out jabbing and landed some jarring right hands that could have toppled a condemned building. But Alvarez walked off Golovkin’s best shots and kept the pressure on. The fight was a standoff after the first half as the fighters fought at a controlled pace. Alvarez himself landed a solid right in the fifth stanza, but Golovkin simply winked.
Alvarez invested in some nasty body shots that on occasions forced Golovkin to step back. Alvarez kept the pressure, but Golovkin kept the jab up to keep the burly Mexican at bay. Golovkin’s punches, however, lacked their usual crunch and he just couldn’t assemble a consistent combination. Alvarez kept chugging forward, but his assaults were also tempered as he clearly didn’t want to be caught with a vicious counter coming in.
Golovkin hurt Alvarez with a vicious right hand in the 10th round, but Alvarez was able to move away from trouble. Golovkin looked tired and failed to capitalize. Golovkin again hurt Alvarez in the 11th stanza, but the Mexican gamely fired back. It was helter-skelter in the 12th, as Golovkin started out strong but it was Alvarez who was flailing away in the final seconds.
Officially, the judges had Alvarez the winner by majority decision. Judge Glenn Feldman scored it a draw at 114-114, but he was overturned by two other judges who saw it for Alvarez. Judges Dave Moretti and Steve Weisfeld both scored it 115-113 for Alvarez. Two being the majority of three, Alvarez was declared the winner by majority decision. For his efforts, Alvarez earned the WBA/WBC middleweight (160 lbs.) crowns.
This writer scored it 116-112 for Golovkin. Admittedly though, there were at least 3 to 4 rounds that could have gone either way. A draw would have been more fitting this time (compared to the first fight which many thought Golovkin also won though it was declared a draw), but the close scores of Moretti and Weisfeld are acceptable. If the two judges had Alvarez winning by a mile, as if Golovkin did not put any effort at all, the chants of “robbery” would be justified.
Still, not a few boxing aficionados criticized the verdict.
“I actually thought it was close but still had GGG taking it by at least two rounds. Both fighters came to leave it all in the ring,” posted former heavyweight champ Lennox Lewis on his Twitter page.
“Thought GGG won, but this was no robbery. I’m gutted for Gennady, who has every reason to think he won TWICE without a victory,” mused noted fight promoter and film producer Lou DiBella in his Twitter post.
Noted boxing trainer and analyst Teddy Atlas assailed the verdict, calling it “a robbery without leaving fingerprints.” Atlas averred that Golovkin controlled the grudge meeting.
Golovkin’s loss ended his hold on the middleweight crowns which dates back to 2010. Golovkin also absorbed his fist defeat as his pro record sunk to 38-1 with 34 knockouts. While believing that he won the fight, Golovkin’s camp respected the verdict and vowed to work on the third fight.
Alvarez, the underdog in the first two fights, will be the smart money bet in the third fight. Golovkin will be older (37) by the time the third match takes place and presumably his confidence will be hanging in the balance. There were already instances in the second meeting when Golovkin looked all of his 36 summers.
The controversy figures to be settled in the ring, in a third and ultimate showdown. It will be a fitting finale, what with both men showing at lot of respect for each other at the end of the second meeting. Golovkin and Alvarez were good friends in their first meeting in 2017, but the friendship was strained after Golovkin’s camp accused Alvarez of taking performance-enhancing drugs.
In the third fight, the dark clouds of animosity figure to be clearer, but just the same boxing fans can expect nothing short of a fistic Armageddon in the finale.
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