…vacant IBF middleweight belt will be on the line
It’s more than likely that practically all fight fans will recognize the winner of the September 15 rematch clash between Gennady Golovkin and Canelo Alvarez as The middleweight champion of the world, and rightly so. However, there are other good fighters out there at 160, either claiming a belt or aiming to do so soon.
One such match-up that will crown a new IBF middleweight ruler will go ahead in New York on October, it has been reported on RingTV.com. Danny Jacobs and Sergey Derevyanchenko will fight in New York, either on the 20th or the 27th of October, with November 10 also a possibility – a source told Ring the fight is likely for Madison Square Garden.
Jacobs, 34-2(29) and a fighter who succeeded in giving Golovkin – who was stripped of the IBF belt for not agreeing to face Derevyanchenko; quite unfairly in the opinion of many – has won two decent fights over decent opposition since dropping a March 2017 decision to GGG. Derevyanchenko, just 12-0(10) yet a year older than “The Miracle Man” at 32, will be taking a big and significant step up in class and the Russian who is based in New York will almost certainly enter the fight as a pretty stiff underdog.
Still, with two punchers going at it, fans can likely look forward to an exciting fight. Last time out, in April, against the largely unheralded Maciej Sulecki, Jacobs had his hands full. Maybe Jacobs will have another tough night against Derevyanchenko. In the opinion of his promoter Eddie Hearn, Jacobs is the send or third best middleweight in the world today. Jacobs needs to prove it in October or November.
If he can, Jacobs could be in line for either a return fight with Golovin or a big fight with Canelo. Derevyanchenko will of course have other ideas. The 160 pound division is buzzing quite nicely right now, even though we all know the unbeaten warrior from Kazakhstan is the genuine champion of the world.