Both the boxer and his team and his followers agree that ‘Canelo’ needs a resounding victory on Saturday in Las Vegas (Nevada) to definitively settle the trilogy against Golovkin in his favor and also redeem himself from his unexpected defeat in May against the Russian Dmitry bivol.
His promoter, Eddie Hearn, stressed that Álvarez cannot now afford a second consecutive stumble.
When Saúl “Canelo” Álvarez vs. Gennady Golovkin fight for the world boxing title
They will meet this Saturday at midnight in Argentina at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, with the unified world title in the super middleweight category.
“If ‘Canelo’ loses again, I think he puts himself in a terrible position. He was number one pound for pound and all of a sudden he can probably be put out of the top 10 if Golovkin wins.” Matchroom promoter.
Golovkin “has already shared 24 rounds with Canelo. He knows how to fight him,” he recalled. “It will be such an epic fight and victory that everyone will want to see it again.”
Withstanding the suffocating midday heat in Las Vegas, hundreds of Mexicans gave a great welcome to their idol ‘Canelo’ at the weigh-in ceremony in front of the fight venue, the T-Mobile Arena (about 20,000 seats), where there were still lines to buy tickets.
Received to the sound of a mariachi band, ‘Canelo’ weighed 167.4 pounds (75.93 kg) on the scale, slightly lighter than the 167.8 pounds (76.11 kg) of the Kazakh.
The boxer from Guadalajara (Jalisco) thanked the support of his compatriots, who came to Las Vegas on the weekend of celebrations for the independence of Mexico, and promised to offer them a fast-track victory.
“I know I have a great rival in front of me but I want to finish before the 12 rounds,” he insisted.
“From the first round I’m going to try to do it” (the knockout), said the Mexican, who is putting in dispute his four undisputed super middleweight champion belts (168 pounds – 76.2kg),
If the mariachis sang “El Rey” to ‘Canelo’, Golovkin was the object of a loud boo from the public.
“I congratulate you on independence day but if you are a real boxing fan, you know who the real world champion is,” snapped the Kazakh, answered by whistles from the crowd.
At 40 years old, Golovkin is the current middleweight champion (160 pounds – 72.6kg) of the World Boxing Association (WBA) and the International Federation (IBF) and will debut at 168 pounds on Saturday.
‘Canelo’ and Golovkin, who profess a fierce personal animosity towards each other, staged a controversial draw in their first confrontation in 2017, with many experts giving Golovkin the winner.
The second, held a year later, ended with Álvarez also controversially winning by unanimous decision.
At 32 years old, the Mexican is the favorite in the bookmakers for this third and probably last chapter against Golovkin.
How to watch Saúl “Canelo” Álvarez vs. Gennady Golovkin for the world boxing title
They transmit ESPN and Star + from 21 for all of Latin America.
In the memory of the fans, however, the bad image he offered against Bivol is still fresh, a defeat that ‘Canelo’ justified by the risks faced when moving up to medium heavyweight (175 pounds – 79.4kg).
“He didn’t fight against Bivol. It was bad. We hope that now he does knock out,” Claudia Padilla, a fan from Guadalajara, who came for the sixth time to cheer on her compatriot, told AFP.
“That defeat can affect him. Tomorrow he has to prove everything he says,” he demanded.
Other followers of ‘Canelo’, on the other hand, do not believe that the setback against Bivol, the second in the 61 fights of his career (57-2-2), could damage all the successes he has achieved.
“With a clear victory, it is consolidated. But his legacy is already written,” said Toni Ramírez, who traveled from San Diego (California) with his wife and another couple.
“He feels that he is against the ropes but he is a warrior,” stressed Ramírez, wearing a ‘Tri’ shirt. “He has trained well and tomorrow he will get the claw out of the Mexicans.”
Source: Ambito
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