Boxing: Golovkin's blockbuster Canelo trilogy at stake in Murata showdown

TOKYO, Japan -- Middleweight great Gennady Golovkin returns to the ring for the first time in 16 months on Saturday, where victory against Japan's Ryota Murata could set up a long-awaited third fight against Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez.

IBF champion "GGG" Golovkin (41-1-1, with 36 KOs) will face Murata (16-2), who holds the WBA version of the title, in a unification fight at Saitama, north of Tokyo.

The hard-hitting Kazakh has been hailed as the biggest name to enter a ring in Japan since heavyweight champion Mike Tyson, who was knocked out in Tokyo by 40-1 underdog James "Buster" Douglas in one of boxing's biggest upsets in 1990.

The prize at stake for Golovkin is a potential third crack at pound-for-pound king Alvarez in a blockbuster trilogy fight later this year, having pushed the Mexican all the way in two previous epic encounters.

If the pair, who appear to harbor genuine mutual animosity, remain unbeaten in their upcoming fights, then a September trilogy fight could smash box office and pay-per-view records.

The all-conquering Alvarez, having last year unified the four super-middleweight belts in just 11 months, will move up to light-heavyweight to challenge undefeated WBA champion Dmitry Bivol on May 7.

The veteran Golovkin, who turns 40 on Friday, has never beaten his Mexican nemesis.

Their first fight, in September 2017, saw Golovkin give an inspired performance, with many believing he had won, only for the judges to declare the bout a split draw.

The rematch eight months later was postponed after Alvarez tested positive for a banned substance. 

- 'Place in boxing history' -

When it eventually took place in September 2018, Alvarez battled to victory by majority decision after a pulsating contest.

Golovkin said his rivalry with Alvarez was not "the only thing that characterizes my career" in a recent interview with Bleacher Report, pointing to his 21 world title defenses -- a middleweight record.

"If I'm going to approach the third fight with Canelo, it'll certainly be with different thoughts and not with the idea of righting any wrongs," he told broadcaster DAZN, adding he was not "bothered by the results in the first two fights".

"I'm not in boxing to prove anything to anybody."

Having been out of action since December 2020, when he stopped Poland's Kamil Szeremeta in the seventh round, 'GGG' will need to remind the world that his power and skill are undiminished when he faces 2012 Olympic gold medalist Murata.

Murata (16-2) is even more rusty -- his last appearance was a successful defense of the WBA 'regular' world title belt against Canada's Steven Butler in Yokohama in December 2019.

Murata was then installed as WBA 'super' champion in 2020, the sanctioning body's premier belt, after Alvarez vacated the crown to move up in weight.

The 36-year-old Murata, who became a household name in Japan after winning Olympic gold, said his fight with Golovkin would decide his "place in the middleweight division and boxing history".

"My entire amateur and professional boxing career has been a preparation for this fight against Gennady Golovkin," he said when the fight was announced.

The bout had originally been scheduled for December last year but was postponed because of coronavirus travel restrictions.

Agence France-Presse

Justin says Manny better than Spence

MANILA, Philippines — Australian strength and conditioning coach Justin Fortune said the other day he’s convinced that super WBA welterweight champion Sen. Manny Pacquiao will crush newly-unified IBF/WBC titlist Errol Spence if ever they face off.

“Let’s put it this way, I think the Manny who beat Keith Thurman last July would take down the Spence who defeated Shawn Porter last Saturday,” said Fortune who runs his own fitness gym in Los Angeles. “I also think that Thurman would beat either Spence or Porter, that’s how good he is. Thurman was at his best when he fought Manny and he couldn’t win, meaning that’s how much better Manny is than any of those guys.”

Fortune said Spence’s win by a split decision over Porter to unify the IBF and WBC welterweight titles wasn’t too convincing. “I think without the knockdown in the 11th round, it should’ve been a draw,” he said. “Personally, I wasn’t that impressed with Spence. He’s not as strong as people think he is. For me, Manny’s stronger. It took Spence 11 rounds to figure out Porter and land the left hook for the knockdown. Still, he didn’t really drop Porter. It was a good shot but Porter came right back. Porter didn’t lose his footing but his gloves touched the canvas so the referee (Jack Reiss), who’s one of the best in the business, rightfully called it a knockdown. I also thought Porter did a good job of turning Spence around along the ropes and had better footwork.”


If Pacquiao fights Spence, Fortune said there’s no doubting the outcome. “Manny’s stronger and quicker,” he said. “If Manny fights the way he did against Thurman, it’s over. He beats Spence by stoppage or decision. Let’s keep in mind that at this elite level, it’s rare to see a knockout.”

What impressed Fortune was the conditioning of both Spence and Porter. “Down to the last bell, those guys weren’t breathing hard,” he said. “They were totally in shape. It was a heckuva fight and the fans loved it. They’re both future Hall of Famers. Boxing needs and deserves fights like that. The welterweights, the 147-pounders, are keeping boxing alive today. And Manny’s on top of them all.”

Fortune said Porter was virtually unmarked after the fight. “If you look at the faces of Manny’s opponents after they fight him, they’re bashed up,” he said. “Some of Manny’s opponents don’t even make the post-fight press conference because they’re being rushed to the hospital. But Porter didn’t show too many signs on his face that he was in a brawl with Spence. Just compare what Manny’s opponents look like after a fight to how Porter looked like after his fight with Spence and you’ll notice Spence can’t be that hard of a puncher.”

Regarding Pacquiao’s next opponent, Fortune said Mikey Garcia appears to be the frontrunner. “I heard Mikey and Danny Garcia are in the running but since Spence announced he’s fighting Danny next, it could be Mikey for Manny,” he said. “Spence actually looked ordinary when he beat Mikey (by a unanimous decision last March). A fight against Mikey would be entertaining and exciting. Mikey always comes to fight and I notice every fighter who takes on Manny seems to fight 10 times better than he usually does because of the challenge of trying to beat one of the greatest fighters of all time.”

Mikey, 31, is the brother of former IBF superfeatherweight champion and trainer Robert Garcia. He has held the WBO featherweight, WBO superfeatherweight, WBC/IBF lightweight and IBF superlightweight titles in a career that started in 2006, 11 years after Pacquiao turned pro. Mikey’s record is 39-1, with 30 KOs and his only loss was to Spence.

Fortune said he’s busy supervising the construction of his new gym which is only a five-minute drive away from his former sweat shop in Los Angeles. “They’ve torn down every structure in the block where my old gym used to stand because the developers are building a new commercial complex so I’ve had to relocate,” he said. “Luckily, I found a place close by so I’m retaining 100 percent of my clientele. The new gym should be open by the first week of next month.”

source: philstar.com

Joshua stops Povetkin in 7th round, keeps heavyweight titles

LONDON — With blood streaming out of his busted nose, Anthony Joshua was in deep trouble once more in front of 80,000 stunned spectators at Wembley Stadium.

Alexander Povetkin, a 39-year-old Russian with supposedly his best days behind him, was dominating heavyweight boxing’s new superstar with his powerful inside work and punching power.

Like 17 months ago when he was knocked down by Wladimir Klitschko in the same venue, Joshua was looking vulnerable. And just like that career-defining night, he came through.

Joshua slowly picked off a tiring Povetkin and delivered a brutal finish in the seventh round to retain his WBA, IBF, and WBO belt on Saturday (Sunday in Manila).

“A few years ago,” Joshua said, “maybe I wouldn’t have won that fight.”

The end was emphatic, and trademark Joshua. A left hook left Povetkin open and Joshua followed through with a straight right that sent the challenger to the canvas. Povetkin had his head through the ropes at one point but he managed to get to his feet, only for Joshua to pile in with a flurry of punches that caused the referee to step in and stop the fight with 1:01 left in the round.

“There is a lot of pressure, the whole country is rooting for me,” said Joshua, whose phenomenal pulling power has seen him attract almost 400,000 spectators to his last five fights. “The energy in here spurs you on and you do feel that pressure, I’m not going to lie.”

Joshua’s record moved to 22-0, with 21 wins coming inside the distance. He is booked to return to Wembley on April 13 for his next bout, and the plan is for the opponent to be either WBC titleholder Deontay Wilder or former heavyweight champion Tyson Fury.

They confirmed earlier Saturday they will be fighting on Dec. 1, likely in Las Vegas.

Asked in the ring who his preferred opponent would be, Joshua said: “My No. 1 would be Wilder, let’s not talk about a No. 2 or 3.”

Selling the Povetkin fight was harder than usual for Joshua and his promoters, with the Russian boxer now at veteran status and conceding around 11 kilograms on the champion. Joshua was 1-10 to win with some British bookmakers.

On a rainy night that forced spectators at ground level to wear plastic ponchos as protection from the wet conditions, Joshua struggled in the early rounds and was rocked by a three-punch combination from Povetkin in the first.

Blood poured from Joshua’s right nostril and he might have lost rounds two and three, too, with Povetkin dangerous close in and with his fierce left hook.

“It’s a nice way to wake up and knew you’re in a tough fight,” Joshua said.

Using his long reach and fighting on the back foot, Joshua came back into the fight and Povetkin was looking for the big punch for the knockout.

Povetkin sustained a bad cut over his left eye in round four and was noticeably slowing up by the end of round five. He had no answer to Joshua’s barrage of punches in the seventh that set up the crowd-pleasing finish.

The Russian, who was the WBA “regular” champion from 2011-13, was getting a shot at a world title for the first time since testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs twice in a seven-month period in 2016.

Coming in the same week as his native Russia was welcomed back into global sporting competition by the World Anti-Doping Agency after a notorious doping scandal, the timing of the fight seemed apt.

And he put up a game fight, one which proved to be Joshua’s toughest test since Klitschko. It was the first time Povetkin was stopped inside the distance.

source: philstar.com