Gennady Golovkin has a rhythm of fighting that almost ignores the activity of his opponent, an ominous pace that will leave Canelo Álvarez with no escape
This is a fight with no bad guys. You don’t get that often in boxing. Saul “Canelo” Álvarez and Gennady Golovkin are bona fide class acts in the ring and now they are pitted against each other in a fight that maybe should have happened a couple of years ago, but at least it’s on. It will be the fight of the year and, if it’s not, some of the blame will be down to the promoters who milked it, who delayed the action until it was more commercially viable for them and, of course, their clients.
All that said, this should be a great fight. Usually there is a disparity in skill that determines a favourite. But there is not much of that here. If pushed, I’d say Golovkin has the greater skill set, but not by a lot. He has that ability gifted to only a few of being able to operate calmly under fire. He goes in what the Americans call “the pocket”, much as Roberto Duran used to do. In that scary space, fighters have to be alert to every oncoming danger while still throwing their own punches, and not many can do it. Golovkin is one of those.
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