What will Gennady Golovkin do this year? Last seen losing his trilogy fight with bitter rival Canelo Alvarez, GGG still holds a couple of middleweight belts and he is not a retired fighter. Golovkin has a number of options open to him, and Australia’s Michael Zerafa says a fight with himself is GGG’s “biggest payday.”
Zerafa, speaking with Fox Sports Australia, said his team are currently in talks with four fighters – GGG, Erislandy Lara, Janibek Alimkhanuly, and Esquiva Falcao, and that he will be “fighting for a world title next, regardless.”
Golovkin is the current WBA and IBF champ, Lara holds the WBA “regular” strap, and Alimkhanuly is the WBO champ, while Falcao is the number one ranked fighter with the IBF at the weight (and there is some talk that GGG could vacate the belt, having until February to defend against Falcao or vacate the title).
But Zerafa wants the Golovkin fight above any and all other possible fights, and he says a fight would bring GGG a huge Australian payday.
“And Golovkin is the fight I want,” Zerafa said. “I know he thinks I’m the easiest fight out there for him. And that’s fine. But I’m also his biggest payday. His three options right now are to fight me, Lara or Falcao. And of those, I represent the most money. With all the backing I’ve got to bring that fight to Australia, I know he’s definitely interested. And Zerafa Vs. Triple G……it even has a nice ring to it. But regardless, I’m fighting for a world title next.”
Zerafa, perhaps best known for his two battles with countryman Jeff Horn, is currently 31-4(19) and the 30 year old has won his last four fights. Golovkin has reportedly been in talks to face Zerafa for some time. Now aged 40 (41 in April), GGG is currently 42-2-1(37) and his last win came in April of 2022, when he stopped Ryota Murata in Japan.
It’s unknown how much GGG has left now but maybe he will like the idea of again taking a fight, a lucrative fight, overseas. How much money would a Zerafa fight down under earn Golovkin? How good a fight would Golovkin-Zerafa be if it did happen? How many wins, if any, has future Hall of Famer Golovkin got left in him?