Gennady Golovkin’s promoter Tom Loeffler is in talks with DAZN, which are described as “advanced,” to put a deal together to have the former unified middleweight world champion fight on their platform, according to DAZN.
GGG’s is now a free agent due to HBO choosing not to continue televising boxing after 2018. Golovkin’s promoter Loeffler has been in talks with DAZN, ESPN and Showtime to look at different deals that would work for the 36-year-old 2004 Olympian. DAZN has already signed up Saul Canelo Alvarez, the biggest star in North America, to a long term deal for five years. Adding Golovkin would give the streaming platform a one-two punch in giving them two of the biggest stars in the U.S. The combination of Canelo and Golovkin would bring in massive numbers of subscribers to DAZN, and it could lead to them taking over boxing in the U.S.
Golovkin signing with DAZN would make it easy for him to face Canelo (50-1-2, 34 KOs) in a trilogy fight, and let him face Demetrius Andrade, and Daniel Jacobs. It wouldn’t help GGG face Jermall Charlo, however, and he could be the next star in the middleweight division. Charlo is with Premier Boxing Champions boss Al Haymon. The biggest money fight for Golovkin is a third match with Canelo. That’s the match that GGG is looking to get, preferably in another state rather than Nevada. Loeffer wants to take the trilogy fight between GGG and Canelo to someplace else if he can get it done. Whether Canelo’s promoters at Golden Boy will drag their feet at Loeffler’s insistence at fighting outside of Nevada is unclear. Although Canelo’s next fight against WBA ‘regular’ super middleweight champion Rocky Fielding is taking place in new York rather than Las Vegas, that’s not a risky fight for the Mexican star. Fielding isn’t one of the better fighters at 168. This fight is more about padding Canelo’s record by giving him a belt to add to his resume.
DAZN just signed Canelo to a $365 million, 11-fight deal that will keep him with their company until he’s 33. Golovkin will likely want similar money for him to sign with them. A lot of boxing fans think Golovkin deserved victories in his two fights with Canelo. If Triple G had won both of his fights against Canelo, his record would be 40-0 right now instead of 38-1-1, and that would have made him a bigger star than he is now. The controversy surrounding the two Canelo-GGG fights showed the importance of fighters picking the right venues to stage the fights. Loeffler agreed to fight Canelo twice in Las Vegas, which is where he is an important factor in bringing fans to the city. That was a mistake on Loeffler’s part. He should have negotiated to have the two Canelo vs. GGG fights take place in a neutral city like New York or Los Angeles.