Gennadiy Golovkin recognizes that it would be difficult for him to attempt to knock out Canelo Alvarez this Saturday night because he’s an elite fighter, and he’s not been able to come close to stopping him in their two previous contests.
As a result, Golovkin (42-1-1, 37 KOs) says he wants to get the victory any way he can in his trilogy with Canelo (57-2-2, 39 KOs) on DAZN PPV at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The way that Golovkin looked fatigued after the second round in his last fight against WBA middleweight champion Ryota Murata last April, it would be a big risk for him to empty his tank trying to KO the sturdy-chinned Canelo.
It’s unknown if Golovkin has spent enough time working on his cardio, as he’s looked really tired in a couple of his fights in the last three years. If GGG had been working hard on building his stamina by running on the track, doing sprints, and running mountains uphill, he should be better conditioned.
The good news for Golovkin is Canelo’s stamina is even worse, so it’s unlikely that he’s going to push a super fast pace on Saturday.
Canelo looked totally exhausted after two rounds in his last fight against Dmitry Bivol last May. Even if Canelo had a hidden injury or sorts, he shouldn’t have been that tired after only two rounds.
“He’s a powerful fighter, no doubt about that, and we saw that in different fights, and he didn’t manage to do that in our first two fights,” said Gennadiy Golovkin to Mortal Combat about his ability to take Canelo Alvarez’s best shots.
“I can only hope this fight will go down as one of the best fights in history. I hope this fight is interesting, and I hope I win,” said a modest Golovkin when asked if he wins whether he would feel that he won the three fights with Canelo.
“I’m just a human with two legs and two arms,” said Golovkin when asked if he’s still the same fighter he once was. “People who are 40 and are in my shoes understand how I feel now. Younger athletes, maybe not yet, but those who turned 40 know exactly what I’m talking about.
“Easier said than done,” said Golovkin when asked if he wanted to take it out of the judges’ hands by knocking out Canelo.
“Of course, hypothetically, it’s clear on paper. ‘Let’s score a knockout. Let’s take it out of the judges’ hands,’ but at this level with these opponents for this fight, it’s a very hard thing to do,” said Golovkin.
