In May, ex-leader P4P rating and the undisputed super middleweight champion Mexican Saul Canelo Alvarez (57-2-2, 39 KOs) made an unsuccessful sortie in light heavyweight – he lost to the owner of the WBA Super belt, Russian Dmitry Bivol (20-0, 11 KOs). In September, he will return to his weight and fight with the antagonist from Kazakhstan Gennady Golovkin (42-1-1, 37 KOs).
WATCH THE FIGHT Canelo vs Golovkin 3 ON DAZN
Ahead of the fight, the 40-year-old Golovkin promised to scrutinize the fight between Canelo and Bivol. Mexican coach
Eddie Reynoso has no doubtsthat this will not bring any benefit to the veteran: “He doesn’t even physically look like Bivol. He doesn’t have the same anthropometry, he doesn’t have the same jab, he doesn’t have the same footwork. Golovkin is Golovkin. He will box like he can. Change the floors of attacks, work from the jab. He always does the same thing. Forecast? It can be a competitive fight, but it can also be an early victory of one of the fighters, because they are both with a powerful blow. These are two strong and brave fighters. I expect a competitive fight, but I believe that we will win.”
On Bivolu’s defeat: “After the fights, a lot is revealed. There were many adverse conditions, but we won. Canelo boxed with an injured hand, injured his hand in the 6th round, but still won. It’s the same with defeats. Little things often lead to them. Sometimes such things decide the outcome of the fight not in your favor. But defeat must be accepted for what it is. Keep working, fixing mistakes, growing, preparing even harder, staying disciplined. I think we were close to beating Bivol but lost in the decisive rounds. If we prepare directly for him, then we will definitely win. But he will have an advantage, because light heavyweight is not our division. Bivol weighed more on the night of the battle.”
On whether Canelo still had the same hunger: “He was still competitive. It was one of those fights, which then become the foundation of your legacy. We will try to do it again. We know what we have to work on. But we do not intend to talk about it, because these are just words. Hunger? Canelo is a winner in life. He will work harder than before, he will come out for revenge on others.”
Golovkin and Canelo previously had two fights in 2017-2018. The first ended in a draw, in the second the Mexican was a little better. Reynoso’s opinion on the third fight: “They have already fully studied each other. They have accumulated anger during this time. Therefore, the third fight will turn out cooler than the previous two. This time they will be fresher, because you don’t have to deal with exhausting weight loss. Saul returns to the ring after being defeated. He wants to get back on the road to victory. And Golovkin hasn’t lost since losing to Canelo in a rematch. For both boxers, this is an important fight. Golovkin got old? I think he matured even more, became even stronger, and the blow is always with him. And he was also positively affected by the decision to change the mentor. He’s much better defensively now and leans more on the jab. He looked good ahead of the Canelo fight.”
The other day, Canelo Alvarez explained his attitude towards Golovkin, and that veteran coach believes that it’s all make-believe: They are not enemies, but business partners.
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