Photo Gallery: Golovkin TKOs Murray

By Ivan Ivanov - 02/22/2015 - Comments

The top two middleweights in the world squared it off at the Salle des Étoiles in Monte Carlo, Monaco last night with the WBA/IBO regular and WBC interim titles at stake and it seemed only fair for this fight to take place in Europe. Both combatants grew up on opposite ends of this continent but one of them may have inadvertently wandered off it on a regular basis. Murray is strictly branded as a European although as an islander he might have second thoughts about continental bondage. Golovkin’s continental status is a little more complicated as he comes from Kazakhstan and this vast land stretches through parts of Europe and Central Asia. Golovkin could have walked at times with one leg in Europe and the other in Asia. His father is Russian and his mother is Korean, so GGG is the proverbial Eurasian by birth and by country.

The fight started in a calm and inquisitive manner with Murray keeping a high guard and his distance while Golovkin imposed his smooth but pulverizing jab. His balance and footwork were of first quality but his pragmatic style put an emphasis on substance rather than form and his power usually lures people into taking him for a brawler. In fact GGG outboxes his opponents before he finishes them and he takes the technical side of boxing quite seriously. Murray was clearly defensive minded and he was almost showing off his defensive awareness as if to reassure his corner he would go through the motions of the game plan. Golovkin took the initiative in the initial rounds and Murray was content to defend, hold and try a counter now and then with some effect. GGG never refuses an opportunity for an exchange as he believes in his power but unlike sheer brawlers, he proved he can jab and box round after round and be equally dangerous.

As a schooled technician Murray did most things right. He used hand defenses with body movement and he moved basically in the right direction and kept proper range. There was a visible switch between defense and offense with him, he was relaxed and balanced in defense but squatted, hunched and leaned when he punched. Golovkin was a class above in this department as he seamlessly switched modes and was quite comfortable punching form any position even on the back foot. He merged into one defense and attack as he did not attack recklessly and used solid defensive basics going forward but welcomed any attack treating it as a countering invitation. GGG is so open-minded towards trading shots that at times he seems to take a punch deliberately in order to land a big one. Murray was much more obvious and naïve in his strict differentiation between defense/offense, he looked like he was shifting gears and was sending clear body language messages making things easy for the predator.

The fight was practically over in the end of the third round when Golovkin timed Murray’s left hook and reached into the opening with a hefty left following through with a right to the temple area. Murray winced, wilted and remained vertical but did not seem to have recovered completely for the fourth round when he went down from a right hand to the body. He got up and fought on but was caught in a barrage against the ropes and went down for the second time after another body shot. He still beat the count and the ref helped him a bit when he mistook the 10 second clapper for the gong and separated them.

The demolition job was in progress, the head and body bombs were detonated but Murray showed great quality in overcoming the physical and mental hurdle. His game plan had already vaporized in the heat but his boxing instincts were too steady for his own good as they carried him forward. Perhaps Murray’s resilience was fueled by hopes that Golovkin could gas out if he did not get an early stoppage. Brawlers/sluggers tend to fade halfway into a fight because of the way they punch. At this point the difference between Golovkin and brawlers should have been clear to anyone but the brave Murray persevered and endured seven more grueling rounds.

The British boxer chose to remain into the dreary confines of the house of pain waiting for GGG to punch himself out. As it turned out, it was Murray who was gasping for air and had to breathe through the mouth as blood clogged the nose. Golovkin’s body work not only inflicted damage but required Murray to cover up and left him little room and strength for punching back. Triple G landed a solid right hand to the side of the head in the end of round 10 that put his opponent down. Murray got up to hear the bell and if he had remained on his stool no one would have blamed him. He came out for round 11 which turned out to be the last round as shots rained all over him and the referee intervened where Murray’s corner should have and waved it off.

If there were any questions about GGG’s ability to go the distance or about his endurance, punch output and power in the late rounds, he answered them against a worthy and tough challenger. He demonstrated that he out boxes an opponent before he overpowers him and he sets up his big shots using a variety of combos. He uses the jab more often than the average pure boxer and he is technically proficient in defense. To beat GGG you have to out-box a boxer and out-punch a puncher at the same time, this makes him a slick, tough customer in the middleweight talent pool today.

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