Pacland's Philippine Boxing Forum

De La Hoya: We Offered Golovkin Eight Figures, They Didn’t Respond

by David P. Greisman

There is an offer on the table for Gennady Golovkin to fight Canelo Alvarez.

And according to Oscar De La Hoya of Golden Boy Promotions, which promotes Alvarez, it’s a sizable one.

“Thirty days ago I made an offer to Triple G and his people,” De La Hoya said after Canelo knocked out Liam Smith. “I made a significant offer, an eight-figure offer. I believe it’s an offer that was two, three or even four times as much as he’s ever made. And I haven’t heard back, and that’s the bottom line.

“Look, I want to make this fight,” De La Hoya said. There’s no doubt about it. Jerry [Jones, who owns the Dallas Cowboys] and I were just talking for several minutes about how he would love that fight here in this stadium. I told Jerry, you got to show me the money. That’s the bottom line. The bottom line is Canelo is not afraid of anybody. He’s going to fight Triple G in September [2017],” he said.

“All I need is for Triple G and his people to at least call us back and negotiate and take the offer,” De La Hoya said. “Triple G mentioned that he’s not a businessman and he’s said publicly that Canelo’s going to offer him $2 million. Guess what: There’s an eight-figure number on the table for Triple G. Sign the contract and let’s stop the nonsense.”

Golovkin’s promoter, Tom Loeffler of K2 Promotions, told Lance Pugmire of the Los Angeles Times that there were preliminary talks but “nothing of substance,” and that it was not substantial enough for him to act right now.

(Loeffler also told Mike Coppinger of USA Today, “The bottom line is that GGG would fight Canelo as soon as Canelo is ready to get in the ring with him.”)

“At least give me a call,” De La Hoya responded to Pugmire in the press conference. “Call me back and we can talk about it. You don’t just leave anybody hanging. All they do is talk in the media and bash and this and that. Let’s talk about it.”

Eric Gomez, president of Golden Boy Promotions, said it was a “significant offer with upside.” He wouldn’t immediately rule out a counterproposal of a percentage split.

“If it’s reasonable,” he said. “But they would have to come back to the table. … We’re ready to sign now for September so we can build it up. September’s a better pay-per-view (than May). September for Mexicans, it’s a better date. It’s Mexican Independence. It has a lot to do with the gate.

“If they are going to be a reasonable and come to the table, let’s hear it,” Gomez said. “They have not even come back and said yes or no. Let’s see what they come back with. That’s a negotiation.”

_________________
Let's get ready to Rumble in the Jungle when the bells will Jingle to start the Bungle!

Floyd Mayweather vs Manny Pacquiao: Will Canelo vs Golovkin cool the plague of disappointment from superfight?Written by Joseph Herron at Sep 18, 2016

Last night, September 17, Canelo Alvarez successfully lifted the WBO Super Welterweight title from former champ Liam Smith by beating him up and finishing him off with a wicked left hook to the liver at the 2:28 mark of the ninth round.

the newly crowned 154 pound champion stated during the post fight press conference that he injured his right hand in the second round of his title winning effort. Although the 26 year old fighter isn't sure how or if it will affect his tentatively scheduled HBO date in December, promoter and mentor Oscar De la Hoya still maintained a high level of optimism and confidence that the "master plan" would not be altered.

"Our plans are to fight in December, and then fight in May, and finally do the big fight in September," the Golden Boy stated to various media members during the streaming post fight presser.

Obviously the "big fight" would be the highly anticipated Middleweight showdown with current WBC,IBF, WBA and IBO champion Gennady Golovkin. 

While many insiders believe Golden Boy Promotions and Team Canelo are doing the right thing, by nurturing the match-up into a much bigger money fight, ring legend and HBO commentator Roy Jones Jr. isn't sure the tactic will ultimately "pay-off."

"Canelo stated after the fight that he has a team," Roy Jones told FightHype.com immediately following Canelo's 9th round KO victory over Liam Smith. "He doesn't want to do anything until everyone in his team decides that they all want to do it. So he's (Canelo) on-board with being patient, waiting to hear what his team says."

"When you look at what Floyd Mayweather did, by milking and waiting for the Manny Pacquiao fight, they eventually made the biggest fight in the history of boxing. So of course they (Team Canelo) will take a page from the Mayweather playbook and wait. But you don't want to over-wait so that people lose interest."

The demand for a Floyd Mayweather vs Manny Pacquiao superfight started to gain serious momentum back in 2009, after the Filipino icon stopped Ricky Hatton and Miguel Cotto in consecutive performances. But the two most prominent figures of the sport didn't meet each other in the ring until May of 2015, when both fighters were widely viewed as being well past their respective fighting primes.

Although the perceived "mega-fight" was a massive commercial success, generating $410 million in PPV revenue alone, the fight itself was a critical bomb. Millions of mainstream and casual viewers complained about the lack of drama and action throughout the twelve round contest, as well as both fighters' lack of willingness to engage each other in the ring.

For the $100 price tag attached to the anticipated event, most spectators were understandably disappointed.

Canelo's promoter and boxing's former cash cow isn't worried about whether or not Alvarez vs. Golovkin will live up to its billing. De la Hoya instead is worried about whether or not all parties involved would inevitably leave millions of dollars on the table by going through with the event too soon.

But waiting too long to stage the event could prove to be even worse.

"We can't afford to wait any longer than September of 2017," De la Hoya recently told ESNews. "I think Canelo vs Golovkin is the biggest fight that boxing has today, and I think it would do huge numbers because of the fact that the fans know it would be a real fight and would more than likely end by way of knock-out."

"Everybody was disappointed because Mayweather vs. Pacquiao was a dull fight. But I strongly believe that this fight can bring back the fan base that boxing lost because of Mayweather/Pacquiao. But it has to be done at the right time. That time is September of 2017."

_________________
Let's get ready to Rumble in the Jungle when the bells will Jingle to start the Bungle!

Is this the fight that Mayweather lost?Posted on September 17, 2016

By AK: Floyd Mayweather is considered one of the best fighters of his era with an amazing record of 49 fights and 49 wins. But despite having a perfect record a lot of people believe Floyd Mayweather was gifted a few decisions.

Some people believe Jose Luis Castillo, Oscar De La Hoya, Marcos Maidana, and Manny Pacquiao all have won against Floyd Mayweather or drawn against him. I disagree and believe Floyd won all of them but the problem with boxing is that sometimes there is not a decisive winner so that ends up splitting the opinion of the public.

Out of all of the Floyd Mayweather’s ‘controversial’ wins the one that gets the most mentioned is the first bout with Jose Luis Castillo. To this day, critics of Mayweather point to this fight as the fight Mayweather unofficially lost, with most observers seeing it as a clean win for Castillo with scores ranging from 115-111 to 117-109. The fight was controversial enough to the Mayweather team that a rematch was signed. The rematch was less controversial and Floyd won decisive.

I will go through round by round of the first bout of Floyd Mayweather vs Jose Luis Castillo. Before I start some quick notes beforehand. First of all Floyd Mayweather was moving up from the 130 pound division to fight Castillo but still remained a 4-1 favorite to win. At that time Jose Luis Castillo was the ring #1 ranked lightweight. Despite both fighters officially meeting the 135 lb lightweight limit, Mayweather came to the ring weighting unofficially 138½ lbs to Castillo’s 147½ lbs.

Round 1

Floyd Mayweather clearly won the first round, landing cleaner punched and being in control throughout the round. 10/9 to Mayweather.

Round 2

Floyd Mayweather knocked Castillo down, but it was ruled as a slip. In my opinion it seemed like a knock down. Not a great round, but Mayweather again landing cleaner punches and seemed superior. 10/9 to Mayweather.

Round 3

Floyd Mayweather again won this round. Castillo was throwing a lot of punches but missed a lot of them. Mayweather was controlling the whole round with his jab. 10/9 to Mayweather.

Round 4

Very close round. Castillo was applying a lot of pressure but missing a lot of punches again. A low blow by Castillo and throws in a lot of punches after the referee stops the action. Again in this round Mayweather landing cleaner punches . 10/9 to Mayweather.

Round 5

Mayweather countered punched amazingly in this round and clearly won the fifth round. Castillo ended up punching Mayweather after the round had finished, trying to turn this fight as dirty as possible. Another round to Mayweather. 10/9 to Mayweather.

Round 6

Castillo again applying amazing pressure throughout the whole round but also landed a low blow which the referee did not see. Castillo put Mayweather down but it was ruled as a push as it clearly was. Castillo landed a lot of body shots. A lot of clean shots by Mayweather. Another close round and it could have gone either way but for me it was a draw. 10/10

Round 7

Really good round for Castillo and seemed to get the better of Mayweather. Near the end of the round Castillo got the best punch of the fight so far. During the round Mayweather got warned twice for using his elbows. 10/9 to Castillo

Round 8

Good round for Floyd Mayweather, managed to dictate the fight in the middle of the ring where he seems more in control. Castillo got a point taken off for no obeying the referee and punching Mayweather after the referee had stopped the action. 10/8 to Mayweather

Round 9

Castillo controlled this round and applied a lot of effective aggression, by putting Mayweather on the ropes througout the round. Mayweather hit Castillo at the end of the round after the bell had gone but no point deducted. 10/9 to Castillo

Round 10

Castillo seemed to have a better round. Not much action going on in this round but again more effective aggression from Castillo. Castillo throws a lot of punches but also misses loads. Floyd Mayweather did not do enough to win this round. Also Mayweather got a point deducted for using his elbows. 10/8 to Castillo

Round 11

Most of the round was spent in the middle of the ring. Close round but Mayweather landed more cleaner shots. 10/9 to Mayweather

Round 12

Again another close round but Castillo seemed busier and landed a few good shots. 10/9 to Castillo

The final score for me was 115-112 to Floyd Mayweather. When watching the fight on HBO they make it sound like it was a huge robbery for Jose Luis Castillo when it reality it was not. The fight was close and it was one of the toughest opponents for Floyd Mayweather but he clearly won. There is a difference between effective aggression and aggression. Jose Luis Castillo used a lot of aggression but ended up missing a lot of punches which made it less effective. The judges picked the right man but not that wide.

_________________
Let's get ready to Rumble in the Jungle when the bells will Jingle to start the Bungle!

Brooke "would love" Canelo bout

By Isaac Robinson

Kell Brook is enthusiastic over the possibility of challenging world champion Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez at super-welterweight when he returns from injury.

Brook remains a world champion at welterweight but, having been stopped in the fifth round by WBA Super, WBC and IBF world middleweight king Gennady Golovkin on September 10, seems destined for the 154lb division.

Brook, who is recovering from a broken eye socket sustained in the clash with the Kazakh, told Sky Sports News HQ: "I think 154lbs would be more my weight class.

"I need to get back training and see if I could make 147lbs healthily - that's also a possibility because I'm a world champion at 147lbs.


"I'd love that fight with Canelo. I just want to be in those big fights. I had a taste with the Golovkin fight and the attention around it is exciting for a fighter to be in.

"I've got an operation this Friday. I went down to see the surgeons and they wanted to plan it right and look into everything.

"They're looking to put a titanium plate in the eye but they're looking at other materials. They're not rushing it but it looks like this Friday. I'm more scared of getting put to sleep than I was of getting in with Golovkin!

"They said it'd be a good few months before I can start sparring again. It's a break so you're looking at six to eight weeks before sparring. I only start sparring when I'm four weeks away from a fight anyway.

"I'm going to make sure I listen to them, take things slowly and don't go faster than I should."


Alvarez was in imperious form at the weekend, knocking Liam Smith down three times on his way to a ninth-round stoppage that earned him the WBO world title.

On September 10, Brook was ahead of Golovkin on the scorecards when his trainer Dominic Ingle threw in the towel and remains adamant that the result would have been very different but for the eye problem.

'The Special One' added: "I told him [Dominic] in round two that my eye was broken and that I couldn't see so he was aware

_________________
Let's get ready to Rumble in the Jungle when the bells will Jingle to start the Bungle!

Golovkin To Canelo: It’s Time To Fight, Respect The Weight Class

The negotiations have already begun between middleweight champions Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin, and in two weeks we will know whether or not these two fighters will finally meet in the ring. In an interview with Boxing Scene, Golovkin said that this is the prime chance to make this super fight happen, and is confident that it will finally become a reality.

"Now - yes, it's time. I believe that everything should be done at the proper time," GGG explained. "This is why we agreed after his fight with Cotto that more time is needed for bigger promotion of our fight. I made a mandatory defense, and his team decided to make money and found a suitable opponent two weight divisions lower in Khan. And for all these fights happening, there has been much greater attention to our fight. No one will say the fight is not hot enough. If money is the issue, you can always arrange a rematch and collect even more viewers...this is a normal practice in boxing; you can make a trilogy or fight four times like Pacquiao and Marquez. It can be agreed when it comes to the money. We both stand out from other boxers, people will wait for our rematches. Ward-Gatti, Mayweather-Pacquiao, Barrera-Morales, they were all ready."

The issue of weight has been at the forefront of this fight not happening, but Golovkin believes that while he understands that Canelo wants to fight at his preferred weight class, you must respect the sport and compete within your limits.

"There should be no misunderstanding about the negotiations between us, it has all been spelled out by WBC rules; all decisions are based on law. Rules must be respected. The same is true when it came to the weight division. You can fight at 155, 156 or 154.5 pounds, you can come up with your own weight, but when it comes to the middleweight world champion belt, then respect boxing and fight in the appropriate weight limit. It is even more interesting that Canelo is a world champion in the middleweight but has not fought any real middleweights. Yes, everyone has their own goals and plans, but we have to show our respect to the sport and boxing. I want to make clear that if somehow and for some reason the fight does not happen, it would not be our fault."

When questioned about his standard of opponents, Golovkin was quick to point out that he simply fought whoever was in front of him, and looks forward to facing the toughest fighters that boxing has to offer. 

"These conversations don’t bother me. No one can chastise me for supposedly choosing to fight a weak opposition. Wade became the mandatory challenger for the IBF belt after Johnson got injured. Rosado after our fight stood by my side. Lemieux was a world champion. Many of the opponents were at the peak of their careers when they fought me. I respect all my opponents. I respect the rules of every organization, and I do not refuse to fight. Kovalev is in the same situation and he doesn’t refuse to fight challengers too. At least I fight with middleweights and do not force opponents from two weight divisions below me to come up."

_________________
Let's get ready to Rumble in the Jungle when the bells will Jingle to start the Bungle!

Manny Pacquiao and the country’s state of affairs

Corporate Watch
Amelia H. C. Ylagan

Posted on September 19, 2016


Manny Pacquiao was completely knocked out. He was snoring his Morse code of long- and-short snorts to his angels as he lay in full surrender to thankful sleep. Heaven forbid, one thought, that he might ever lay prone like that on the canvas, this boxing phenomenon of 38 KO’s, the first and only boxer to win world titles in eight different weight divisions. No worry, Manny and his wife Jinkee, and a platoon of bodyguards and followers were just sleeping out a 13-hour flight back from Los Angeles to Manila in Business Class on a Philippine Airlines Airbus 340-300. All were tired, after that packed news conference on Sept. 9 at the Beverly Hills Hotel.

 
We pray Manny won’t ever be kayoed, as we look anxiously to yet another fight on Nov. 5, as announced by his promoter Bob Arum last month. This was surprising, as Manny had declared his retirement from the sport last April, before the national elections. Now he has been elected Senator, and he had to officially explain his change of mind, as his campaign promise was to focus fully on being a lawmaker. Pacquiao told the AFP, “I felt lonely... Boxing still likes me; boxing still loves me... so why stop my boxing career?” (Sun, Sept. 11, 2016)

Pacquiao, 37 years old, 5’5” tall (58-6-2, 38 KOs) is fighting Jessie Vargas, 27 years old, 5’11” tall, world welterweight champion (27-1, 10 KOs) on Nov. 5, to be held at the 19,000-capacity ($50 per seat) Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas (Sky Sports, Aug. 4, 2016).

Manny’s coach for 15 years, Freddie Roach, said “he (Vargas) is not in Manny’s league.” (The Philippine Star, Sept. 9, 2016). But sportswriter Chris Williams points out that Pacquiao could somehow get knocked out in this fight against Vargas, as Pacquiao was knocked out by Juan Manuel Marquez in 2012... (and) “Pacquiao’s last knockout win (was) over Miguel Cotto in 2009, he’s fought 11 times and knock(ed)-out no one... That’s pretty sad.” (Boxing News, Aug. 15, 2016). But we really do not know what will happen.

Forbes Magazine ranks Manny Pacquiao as the #63 World’s Highest Paid Athlete, with “$24 million earnings in 2016, after his April bout with Timothy Bradley where he banked a $20 million purse plus his cut of Filipino TV money. He’s earned $500 million during his career from purses, pay-per-view and endorsements.” Pacquiao’s fight with Floyd Mayweather in May 2015 set every financial record in the history of boxing, including PPV buys (4.6 million), gate ($73 million) and total revenue ($600 million), and rewarded him with a $125 million payday. (forbes.com, accessed, Sept. 15, 2016).

Five hundred million dollars would be around P24 billion in Philippine money! But that amount is gross, accounting-wise (meaning not yet net of liabilities) -- and figuratively “gross,” in a way of speaking about its being nauseatingly huge, calling on unpalatable realities like “have taxes been paid?” But the Supreme Court Second Division issued a resolution in May upholding its 2014 injunction stopping the Court of Tax Appeals from collecting over P3-billion cash bond or P4-billion surety bond from the Pacquiao couple (Philippine Daily Inquirer, May 20, 2016). They had argued that the collection process of the BIR, then under Kim Henares of the Benigno S. C. Aquino III administration, violated their right to due process of law by trying to extract bonds or surety higher than their tax liabilities of P3.29 billion and before giving them a chance to settle this. In their petition, the couple said they could not afford the bond, given that their net worth was only P1,185,984,697 as of July 1, 2013 (Ibid.).

“Ayos na,” the common man-in-the-street might sarcastically judge, meaning “all is well,” in sardonic acceptance. (N.B.: “son-of-a-whore” in its Tagalog translation, even as an expletive, is not common and ordinary language for Filipinos.) But what about the 492 tax cases filed by the BIR 2010 to June 2016, under Henares’ RATE (Run after Tax Evaders) and RATS (Run after the Smugglers -- 222 cases filed) programs? There have been no convictions. There are 50 RATE cases pending before the Court of Tax Appeals, one before the Court of Appeals and 17 others before the regular courts, Department of Justice (DoJ). The DoJ dismissed two cases with finality, while the Supreme Court dismissed one. The CTA and other regular courts junked three other cases (The Philippine Star, June 29, 2016).

“The general public can only regard with frustration -- and suspicion -- what seems to be the government’s losing streak of tax collection cases,” a newspaper editorial lamented three years ago (The Manila Times, Aug. 10, 2013). And all because of technicalities in the law and this thing of “due process.” The editorial cited a 2006 P59.7-million tax credit scam case filed against couple Faustino and Gloria Chingkoe and five co-accused with the Manila Regional Trial Court “dismissed the case for, hold your breath, the failure of the Solicitor-General to attend hearings” (Ibid.). After two years the Court of Appeals reinstated the cases, but the Supreme Court ruled that the Manila Regional Trial Court was right since the beginning. “Rules” can be convenient.

“That’s nothing,” the brave Manila Times editorial said, “compared to the whopping P25-billion tax evasion case of Lucio Tan/Fortune Tobacco incurred in 1990-1992” (Ibid). Here, the prosecution failed to prove that the alleged nine dummy corporations supposed to have been set up by Fortune Tobacco to manipulate supply acquisition prices towards taxable sales to Fortune were indeed owned by Fortune. Shares of stock in the “dummy” companies were named to Fortune employees and Articles of Incorporation showed that the employees owned and ran the “dummy” corporations directly. Case dismissed.

The Marikina Metropolitan Trial Court judge justified the decision to dismiss, based on his professed doubt that “any person, rich or poor can be convicted on an extrapolation based on pure assumptions or an individual’s imagination, for otherwise, the presumption of innocence which is at the core of our criminal justice system would lose its sense of value and sensible attribute” (Ibid.) Innocent unless proven guilty; criminal liability should be proven beyond reasonable doubt -- that is the rule of law and the immutable human right of a person. Again, the technicalities are the devil in the details.

As PR flight 103 prepared to land at NAIA Terminal 1, Senator Manny Pacquiao closed his Bible, which was before him all of his waking time. Other passengers folded the latest editions of local newspapers, in which headlines blared the icy conflict of President Rodrigo Duterte with US President Barack Obama and UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon at the ASEAN Summit in Vientiane, Laos. The issue was far above and beyond the improper and unacceptable diplomatic and ethical breach by Duterte calling Obama “son-of-a-whore” at a preceding local press conference, and Duterte’s impulsive threat to detach from the United Nations. Duterte anticipated unsolicited advice from Obama and Ban on human rights and the rule of law perceived to have been breached in Duterte’s “Drug War” and the alleged extrajudicial killings for this.

As passengers prepared to disembark, the flight attendants could hardly hold back the star-struck crowd in economy class who wanted selfies on their cellphones with their hero, Manny Pacquiao.

Prove yourself a real hero to the Filipino people, Senator Emmanuel D. Pacquiao. Shed political alliances and personal friendships to actively fight, in the Senate, for a consistent application of due process and human rights in our country, to the ultimate end of a crippling KO to unorthodox methods towards the claimed righteous “wars” of our aggressive leaders. We must play by the rules, you know that. Forever the rule of law, supported judgments and due process -- it’s somewhere there, in so many words, in the next pages of your open Bible.

Amelia H. C. Ylagan is a Doctor of Business Administration from the University of the Philippines.

_________________
Let's get ready to Rumble in the Jungle when the bells will Jingle to start the Bungle!

Floyd Mayweather Has Moved On From Conor McGregor Fight That Was Never Going to Happen Anyway
By Stephen Douglas

Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregoraren’t going to fight according to Floyd Mayweather. The retired boxer broke the news to FightHype.com on the same night that FOX Sports’ Colin Cowherd once said he had heard the fight would take place. Mayweather said that “we must move on” and hopefully, we will. If we haven’talready.

 

Floyd Mayweather Has Moved On From Conor McGregor Fight That Was Never Going to Happen Anyway

By: Stephen Douglas | 4 hours ago 

FLoyd Mayweather and Conor McGregoraren’t going to fight according to Floyd Mayweather. The retired boxer broke the news to FightHype.com on the same night that FOX Sports’ Colin Cowherd once said he had heard the fight would take place. Mayweather said that “we must move on” and hopefully, we will. If we haven’talready.

Mayweather spoke some harsh combat sports truths adding, “I feel honored to be the biggest name in MMA and in boxing and I don’t even compete no more.”

I’m sorry, did he forgot about CM Punk?

Mayweather hasn’t fought since September 12, 2015 and so far, remains retired. Meanwhile, McGregor fought Nate Diaz last month at UFC 202. Apparently, a bunch of boxers who are not Floyd Mayweather have also called out or challenged McGregor. They are just as likely to get a boxing match against the UFC featherweight champion, but they’re going to do it without as much fanfare as Mayweather.

_________________
Let's get ready to Rumble in the Jungle when the bells will Jingle to start the Bungle!

Roy Jones Jr.: 'If I stop now, I'm good with that'

Sep 18, 2016

Dan RafaelESPN Senior Writer

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Former longtime pound-for-pound king Roy Jones Jr. told ESPN on Friday night that he is considering retiring from boxing as he recovers from a torn biceps suffered in his last fight.

In a Pensacola, Florida, homecoming fight Aug. 13, Jones won a shutout 10-round decision against journeyman Rodney Moore in a cruiserweight bout despite tearing his right biceps in the fifth round.

"If I stop now, I'm good with that because I got a win in front of my fans in that last fight," Jones said Friday.

Jones (64-9, 46 KOs), who is part of the HBO PPV broadcast team that will call the Canelo Alvarez-Liam Smith card Saturday night at AT&T Stadium, rolled up his sleeve to show off the scar from the surgery he had a few days after the fight.

"My biceps, it just popped in the fifth round," Jones said. "My right hand was dead after that even though I threw it a few times. But it's already feeling a lot better. I'm not sure if this is the end or not. I may fight again if I feel like it, but I don't know if I will feel like it."

Even if he feels like fighting again, Jones, who turned pro in 1989, said he would be out until at least November while recovering from the surgery.

Jones, 47, is about a decade past his best, when he was the untouchable king of boxing who won world titles in four weight classes: middleweight, super middleweight, light heavyweight and heavyweight.

Jones said once his arm is recovered he will go back into the gym and see how he feels.

"But if I stop now I'm good with it," Jones said. "I still might go on, but if I just stop, I'm good with it.

"It ain't about the money. I want to fight because I love to fight. I like testing myself, but I'm not trying to fool myself. I'm not 32 anymore. I'm 47 and know I can't fight forever, but I'm not trying to prove nothing to anyone. But if I have fought for the last time, I can live with that. It was big for me to go home to Pensacola and get a win in front of all those fans who have supported me for so many years."

_________________
Let's get ready to Rumble in the Jungle when the bells will Jingle to start the Bungle!

BOXING SCHEDULE

September 23

At Miami, Okla. (Showtime):

Travis Peterkin vs. Radivoje Kalajdzic, 10 rounds, light heavyweights

Ivan Baranchyk vs. Wang Zhimin, 10 rounds, junior welterweights

Ivan Golub vs. James Stevenson, 8 rounds, welterweights

Trey Lippe-Morrison vs. Ed Latimore, 6 rounds, heavyweights

Gaybatulla Gadzhialiyev vs. Jorge Luis Munguia, 6 rounds, welterweights

James McKenzie Morrison vs. Aaron Chavers, 6 rounds, heavyweights

Dillon Cook vs. Ryan Davis, 6 rounds, junior middleweights

Hurshidbek Normatov vs. Bernard Thomas, 6 rounds, middleweights

At Kissimmee, Fla. (UniMas):

Julian Rodriguez vs. Claudionel Lacerda, 8 rounds, junior welterweights

Christopher Diaz vs. Raul Hirales, 8 rounds, featherweights

Toka Kahn Clary vs. John Gemino, 8 or 10 rounds, featherweights

Sammy Valentin vs. Gledwin Ortiz, 6 rounds, welterweights

Nestor Bravo vs. Sergio Gomez, 6 rounds, lightweights

Jean Carlos Rivera vs. Raul Chirino, 6 rounds, featherweights

Jonathan Irizarry vs. TBA, 4 rounds, featherweights

Orlando Gonzalez vs. TBA, 4 rounds, featherweights

At Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic:

Javier Fortuna vs. Marlyn Cabrera, 10 rounds, junior lightweights

Jeison Rosario vs. Carlos Jairo Cruz, 10 rounds, junior middleweights

Wellington Arias Romero vs. Abrahan Peralta, 8 rounds, junior welterweights

Osvaldo Cabrera vs. Ramon De la Cruz, 8 rounds, lightweights

Abraham Nova vs. Willy Morill, 4 rounds, junior lightweights

At Ontario, Calif.:

Carlos Carlson vs.Alex Rangel, 10 rounds, bantamweights

Giovani Santillan vs. Brian Jones, 8 rounds, junior welterweights

Erick Ituarte vs. Alberto Mora, 8 rounds, featherweights

Manuel Mendez vs. Erick Martinez, 8 rounds, lightweights

Ruben Villa vs. Jose Mora, 4 rounds, featherweights

Danny Andujo vs. Cesar Guzman, 4 rounds, bantamweights

September 24

At Carson, Calif. (beIN Sports Espanol):

Donnie Nietes vs. Edgar Sosa, 12 rounds, flyweights

Mark Magsayo vs. Ruben Garcia, 12 rounds, featherweights

Arthur Villanueva vs. Juan Jimenez, rematch, 12 rounds, bantamweights

At Manchester, England (AWE):

Anthony Crolla vs. Jorge Linares, 12 rounds, for Crolla's WBA lightweight title

John Ryder vs. Jack Arnfield, 12 rounds, middleweights

Hosea Burton vs. Fernando Castenada, 12 rounds, light heavyweights

Callum Johnson vs. Willbeforce Shihepo, 12 rounds, for vacant Commonwealth light heavyweight title

Isaac Lowe vs. Tshifhiwa Munyai, 12 rounds, for Lowe's Commonwealth featherweight title

Marcus Morrison vs. TBA, 8 rounds, middleweights

Liam Conroy vs. Baptiste Castegnaro, 6 rounds, light heavyweights

Conor Benn vs. Ross Jameson, 4 rounds, welterweights

Nathan Wheatley vs. Dan Blackwell, 4 rounds, middleweights

Mark Jeffers vs. Ben Heap, 4 rounds, middleweights

Lyndon Arthur vs. Andy Neylon, 4 rounds, super middleweights

At Cancun, Mexico

Jhonny Gonzalez vs. Hirotsugu Yamamoto, 12 rounds, junior lightweights

Diego Cruz vs. Ivan Cano, 10 rounds, welterweights

Lourdes Juarez vs. Yesenia Gomez, 8 rounds, female flyweights

At Frankfurt, Germany:

Marco Huck vs. Ovill McKenzie, 12 rounds, cruiserweights

September 27

At Santa Fe, N.M. (PBC on Fox Sports 1/Fox Deportes):

Bryant Perrella vs. Yordenis Ugas, 10 rounds, welterweights

September 29

At London:

Reece Bellotti vs. Ian Bailey, 10 rounds, featherweights

September 30

At Chicago (CBS Sports Net):

Mike Lee vs. Chris Traietti, 10 rounds, light heavyweights

At Las Vegas (CBS Sports Net):

Hanzel Martinez vs. Emmanuel Quartey, 10 rounds, junior featherweights

Tony Lopez Jr. vs. Stephon Young, 10 rounds, bantamweights

John Vera vs. Milorad Zizic, 10 rounds, junior middleweights

At Mexico City (Telemundo):

Alejandro Hernandez vs. Emanuel Dominguez, 10 rounds, junior featherweights

At Indio, Calif. (Estrella TV):

Petr Petrov vs. Michael Perez, 12 rounds, WBA lightweight eliminator

Genaro Games vs vs. Miguel Barajas, 4 rounds, junior lightwweights

Alexis Rocha vs. TBA, 6 rounds, welterweights

Jonathan Navarro vs. Larry Carrillo, 6 rounds, junior welterweights

Javier Padilla vs. TBA, 4 rounds, junior featherweights

Luis Coria vs. Tyshawn Sherman, 4 rounds, lightweights

Bastie Samir vs. Sijoula Ade Shabazz, 6 rounds, super middleweights

At Harrare, Zimbabwe:

Charles Manyuchi vs. Damien Martin, 12 rounds, welterweights

_________________
Let's get ready to Rumble in the Jungle when the bells will Jingle to start the Bungle!

De La Hoya: If Golovkin’s not happy with offer, good luck to him
By Dan Ambrose: 

In what appears to be a case of Golden Boy Promotions CEO Oscar De La Hoya letting middleweight champion Gennady “GGG” Golovkin know that he had better accept the eight-figure offer given to him for a fight against Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, De La Hoya is saying that he wishes Golovkin luck trying to find another fighter that will give him the same money that he’s offering him for a fight next year.

De La Hoya has reportedly offered Golovkin $10 million for a fight that some boxing fans think could make more than $100 million. De La Hoya says that Golovkin needs to accept the offer given to him. He says Golovkin can make more with the pay-per-view upside he’ll be getting for the fight. Just how much extra money Golovkin can make is unclear.

De La Hoya isn’t saying what Golovkin’s percentage of the financial pot is for the fight, and that has a lot of boxing fans wary. If Golovkin is getting 5% to 10% for the fight against Canelo, then it’s not a good deal. If Canelo is getting between 70 and 95% of the money for the fight, then you have to think Golovkin would be making a mistake in agreeing to the offer.

“There’s obviously [pay-per-view] upside and if he’s not happy with what I’m offering, good luck to him fighting someone where he can make that money. He never will,” said De La Hoya via the latimes.com.

Wow! De La Hoya is really giving Golovkin a clear message here with him telling him that he wishes him luck in finding someone else that will give him that kind of payday. It’s a two-edged sword. Canelo isn’t going to get the kind of money he’ll be seeing fighting anyone but Golovkin. Golden Boy can’t trot out Miguel Cotto again and think that Canelo will make a ton of money from a rematch. The pay-per-view upside for a fight between Canelo and Golovkin likely won’t be enough to justify Golovkin agreeing to $10 million. It would be better if De La Hoya offered him a percentage deal of 55-45. That would likely get Golovkin and his promoter to agree to the fight quickly.

The boxing fans already saw the Canelo-Cotto fight, and they saw that Canelo was way too big for the tiny 5’7” Cotto. Canelo isn’t going to make huge money fighting any of the welterweights or junior middleweights. Floyd Mayweather Jr. is retired, so he’s not an option. Manny Pacquiao has already said recently that Canelo is too big to fight. There’s no one popular enough in the super middleweight division for Canelo to get big money fighting. I don’t think Golden Boy will risk putting Canelo in with a light heavyweight like Andre Ward, Sergey Kovalev or Adonis Stevenson, because he could get hurt fighting one of those guys.

Unless someone else comes along in the next 10 years to fight Canelo, Golovkin is his best and only shot at making the big money that has thus far eluded him. Canelo hasn’t made the huge money in his fights against Mayweather and Cotto. He has a chance to make the money against Golovkin, but it appears that he’s going to need to give him a fair deal for him to get the fight.

I don’t think De La Hoya is going to get the kind of results that he wants to by telling Golovkin and his promoters that they’re not going to find that kind of money fighting someone else. If anything, it might harden their stance to wait until they’re given what they feel is a fair deal or the Canelo fight. You would have to think a fair deal would be a 55-45 split of the money.

“If you say I’m going to offer you $2 million, well, guess what? I’m offering you a substantial amount. Eight figures,” De La Hoya said to the latimes.com. “Take the offer, sign the contract and let’s make the fight. Stop calling people clowns.”

Eight figures sound good, but it might not be good for Golovkin if Canelo is going to make $100 million to Golovkin’s $10 million. Sure, Canelo is the A-side in the negotiations, but he’s not fighting a guy that doesn’t bring in fans. Golovkin is going to be attracting a huge amount of interest in this fight.

As popular as Canelo is, he doesn’t bring in a lot of pay-per-view buys when he’s not fighting a major star. When Canelo fought Mayweather, they teamed up to bring in 2.2 million buys. When Canelo fought Cotto, they brought in 900,000. Canelo’s fights against other guys have brought in low PPV numbers.

Here are Canelo’s pay-per-view bouts:

Mayweather vs. Canelo – 2.2 million buys

Canelo vs. Alfredo Angulo – 350,000 buys

Canelo vs. Erislandy Lara – 325,000 buys

Canelo vs. Miguel Cotto – 900,000 buys

Canelo vs. Amir Khan – 450,000 buys

What these numbers tell us is that there have been only two fighters during Canelo’s 11-year pro career that has helped him bring in a lot of buys. Right now, there’s no one in sight for Canelo to make that kind of money that he dreams about. Unless Errol Spence Jr. can become a star in the next five to seven years, Canelo has no one he can fight that will bring in the big money he obviously wants to get.

There’s only Golovkin right now. By the time Spence becomes a huge star, Canelo will be aging and likely no longer the fighter he is today. Canelo might have a short shelf life due to him starting his career so early, and because of his stamina problems.

De La Hoya needs to realize that when your offer has been turned down by a fighter and his promoter, you can’t keep sounding like a broken record by telling them to accept the offer given to them. De La Hoya is going to end up sounding like a parrot by repeatedly telling GGG and his promoter Tom Loeffler to accept the offer given to them.

The only thing De La Hoya can do is either walk away or say he tried or bump up the offer. It’s a waste of time for De La Hoya to keep talking about the fight if he’s not going to increase the offer, because I don’t think Golovkin and his promoter Loeffler are going to change their minds and accept the deal.

Loeffler said ‘but nothing of substance that was turned down,” in speaking to the latimes.com about Canelo.

_________________
Let's get ready to Rumble in the Jungle when the bells will Jingle to start the Bungle!

Hughie Fury vs. Andy Ruiz Jr. is off

By Scott Gilfoid: 

It looks like the heavyweight clash between unbeaten Hughie Fury (20-0, 10 KOs) and Andy Ruiz Jr. (29-0, 19 KOs) won’t be taking place on the undercard of the Tyson Fury vs. Wladimir Klitschko card next month on October 29 at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, UK. Hughie’s trainer/father Peter Fury tweeted a message today saying that Ruiz Jr. has pulled out of the card.

Hughie, 21, and Ruiz Jr. were supposed to be fighting in a World Boxing Organization heavyweight eliminator fight. The winner of the contest would have been the WBO mandatory to Tyson Fury. That would have setup a weird potential scenario where Tyson could be looking at defending against Hughie.

“Andy Ruiz junior pulls out of fight October 29th against Hughie Fury. News just in today,” said Peter Fury on his Twitter.

This would have been a winnable fight for Hughie as long as he didn’t get hit early by one of Ruiz’s big shots. If the WBO had ordered Hughie to fight #4 WBO David Haye, #1 Joseph Parker, #2 Wladimir Klitschko, #7 Jarrell Miller, #10 Kubrat Pulev, #14 Erkan Teper, it would have been fun to see what Hughie would have done. Would he have agreed to fight one of those guys or would he have opted not to take part in the WBO heavyweight eliminator? My guess is Hughie wouldn’t have fought any of them, and instead I think he would have gone in the opposite direction.

It’ll be interesting to see if Hughie still winds up on the card. You would have to believe that he’ll still be fighting on the card, because it will give him the chance to be seen by a lot of boxing fans. However, with the fight date only a month away, it’s not probable that a good opponent will be found for the 6’6” Hughie with just five weeks’ notice.

Hughie hasn’t exactly been beating high caliber opposition during his boxing career. In Hughie’s last five fights, he’s beaten Fred Kassi, Dominick Guinn, Larry Olubamiwo, Emilio Zarate and George Arias. Hughie’s fight against Kassi was a strange one. By the 6th round, Hughie had run out of gas completely, and he was taking really bad punishment from Kassi.

Things looked pretty bleak for Hughie in the Kassi fight by round six. However, a miracle head-butt occurred, causing a bad cut over Hughie’s left eye. The referee then halted the fight in the 7th round, sending the fight to the scorecards. Luckily for Hughie, he had built up an early lead and got the decision win. Still, the way that Hughie gassed out in six rounds from the pressure from Kassi had got to be a real cause for concern for him and Peter. I don’t buy the reason for Hughie gassing out being from his skin condition. I think it was just a case of Hughie not having great stamina to begin with, and him not being capable of handling pressure from someone. Frankly, I wasn’t surprised to see how badly Hughie gassed out. He’d been involved with a ton of mismatches against fodder opposition up until the Kassi fight. Hughie couldn’t handle being pressured by Kassi from what I saw, and it caused him to gas out. Like I said, the head clash was a miracle for Hughie, and he should be thankful it occurred. I just hope that we don’t see a similar pattern in Hughie’s future fights where his matches end with cuts from head-butts after he gasses out at the midpoint of his bouts.

In looking at some of Hughie’s recent fights, I think he needs to learn how to stand in the pocket more. He’s doing too much running and holding, and I think it’s causing him to get tired. You don’t see too many 6’6” heavyweights running around the ring like Hughie does. The bigger heavyweights know better than to move too much. They realize that they’ll gas out if they move too much. I think Hughie needs to get a clue and stop moving all the time. The problem that Hughie has is he doesn’t have the punching power to stand in front of his opponents to make them fear him. As such, the guys that Hughie is fighting are walking him down and looking to land their shots. Hughie has been fortunate that his opposition has been horrible.

_________________
Let's get ready to Rumble in the Jungle when the bells will Jingle to start the Bungle!

Mayweather: I Had a Great Career, I'm Just Focused on Promoting
By Edward Chaykovsky

According to retired former pound for pound king Floyd Mayweather Jr. (49-0, 26KOs), he is fully focused on his promotional company, Mayweather Promotions - and not even considering the possibility of a ring return.

The former five division world champion retired from the sport last September after dominating former world champion Andre Berto over twelve rounds at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. A few months later, Mayweather vacated his WBC/WBA world titles at welterweight and junior middleweights.

A few months ago there were rumblings, by Mayweather himself, of a cross-sport showdown with UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor. Nobody ever took the rumblings serious and there were never actually any realistic negotiations between the two sides.

Last month Mayweather traveled to the Rio Olympic games and scouted several of the top talents. Mayweather's promotional company has already created three world champions, including the current WBC super middleweight beltholder Badou Jack.

Even in retirement, countless fighters continue to call him out, and both fans and insiders expect him to return at some point to break the unbeaten 49-0 record of heavyweight legend Rocky Marciano.

“I had a great career,” Mayweather said to the Las Vegas Journal. “It’s good to be on the other side, helping young fighters achieve their dreams. So many young fighters that want to get to a certain plateau in the sport of boxing. I’m just here to help, lend a helping hand. I had a great career when I was fighting. I loved to entertain, give the people what they wanted to see.”

“I’m not really focused on myself. I’m focused on young fighters trying to fight. Help them become the next Floyd Mayweather. Right now, I’m just focused on Mayweather Promotions where the past, the present and the future of sports entertainment meet. It’s all about building fighters and helping fighters.”

_________________
Let's get ready to Rumble in the Jungle when the bells will Jingle to start the Bungle!

The Ukrainian Middleweight Takeover

By Cain Bradley on September 20, 2016



Sergiy Derevyanchenko has yet to show a weakness. (Photo: Rosie Cohe/Showtime)

Ukraine currently looks like an absolute powerhouse of boxing and one weight they have yet to make an impression at is middleweight…

Ukraine currently looks like an absolute powerhouse of boxing and one weight they have yet to make an impression at is middleweight. In Ievgen Khytrov and Sergiy Derevyanchenko they have two boxers capable of changing that.

Someone always gets robbed at the Olympics. It seems to happen every single Olympics, perhaps unsurprising given the large number of bouts in a short time. Floyd Mayweather, Roy Jones Jr. and Michael Conlan are perhaps the most famous examples. It tends to be even more noticeable when the defeated boxer goes on to achieve big things. A boxer who was subjected to this fate at London 2012 but almost forgotten about was the Ukrainian Ievgen Khytrov.

So often the story of a boxer starts with bullying. For Khytrov his Dad took him to boxing as punishment for being a bully hoping he would be taught a lesson. Instead the Ukrainian took to it. Khytrov was a successful junior winning the European Championships but it took a while for him to get his chance in a loaded Ukrainian team. When he did—after 2009—he was dominant. His best result came in the 2011 World Championship when as an unseeded boxer he won in the middleweight division. To make the semi final he had four comfortable wins—two stoppages and two wide decisions. Then in the semi final he stopped Bogdan Juratoni who had beaten the number two seed. Then in the final he beat Ryoto Murata—the gold medalist in London who is unbeaten as a professional. Entering London, Khytrov was a strong favorite despite the presence of Murata. He was a boxer that was spoke of in hushed tone and probably the most feared (not the best which was Vasyl Lomachenko another Ukrainian) of all the competitors. Khytrov got the tougher half (all three would be opponents on route to the final are now unbeaten professionals) but was still expected to come through. His first opponent was Anthony Ogogo representing the home country. Khytrov knocked his opponent down twice but on the point scoring system it came back as 18-18. Next count back was applied and despite some controversy it was given as 52-52. This led to the application of a tiebreaker with the judges each picking a winner. Shockingly it was the home fighter, Anthony Ogogo who took the decision. In one of his final amateur bouts he stopped the Olympic Champion Zhanibek Alimkhanuly within a minute. With a final amateur record of around 480 wins and 23 defeats, Khytrov turned professional.

The Ukrainian Lion has started his professional career impressively. He has won 14 fights with no losses and 12 stoppages. In his sixth fight he stopped the experienced Willie Fortune. Paul Mendez his most recent opponent that he stopped and he currently holds the NABF middleweight title. He has always been matched aggressively and his last five opponents had a record of 68-9 entering the bouts. BoxRec has him ranked eleventh in the division and in the top fifteen of all four major governing organizations including fifth in the WBC. He has shown signs of struggling in the ring, notably when behind on the scorecards against Nick Brinson before producing a stoppage. The speed and combinations of Brinson kept Khytrov off him for a few rounds. He will surely improve over the longer distance as his stalking strong style will wear down opponents. Mendez was his most recent opponent and felt the force of over 50 landed punches a round. Maybe a lazy comparison is Gennady Golovkin. He has the similar come forward style as he stalks down his opponents. He is similarly powerful with his stoppage of Chris Chatman very impressive visually. Chris Middendorf who is the matchmaker for Iron Mike Promotions described him as having the potential of GGG. He seems to have a vicious streak in him where he really enjoys hurting opponents. At his best he switches effortless from head to body but perhaps does not set up the big left hooks well enough.

So Khytrov does look like a top prospect in the middleweight division, albeit with flaws. The greater prospect may be the man Khytrov replaced in the Ukrainian team, Sergiy Derevyanchenko. At 22, he was the World Championship bronze medalist when losing to the eventual winner Matt Korobov. At the Olympics he lost to the man who won the silver medal, Emilio Correa Jr. He was one of the highlights of the early WSB—going 23-1 over four seasons. In some ways, the WSB prepared Derevyanchenko better for the professional game than the more typical amateur pedigree of Khytrov. He finished with an amateur record of 390-20.

His first five opponents were dispatched nice and comfortably. Sounds par for the course until you realize his opponents had a combined record of 76-39-3 and he stopped four of them. His sixth opponent was Elvin Ayala, somewhat of an upper tier gatekeeper. In the five years prior only Curtis Stevens and David Lemieux had beaten him. Derevyanchenko added himself to that list with a terrific decision win. He did not lose a round on any scorecard and two judges even gave him a 10-8 round. Two stoppage wins followed over two impressive opponents before another step up with Sam Soliman. Granted the veteran is probably past his best but only Anthony Mundine has ever stopped him before and prospect Dominic Wade only got a split decision over him in his previous fight before being stopped by Gennady Golovkin. Derevyanchenko was marvelous, dropping Soliman in the first with a one-two. The second round saw him dropped twice and the referee showed mercy by calling an end to the violence. With that win he is now the IBF number two and surely in line for a title shot soon.

His professional fights and those under the WSB showed someone with great power. But his nickname is the technician which tells you more about his style. He is aggressive but in a more patient manner than Khytrov. For the weight he is short only coming in at 5’7 but has tremendous power, especially when going to the body. He has an efficient manner with his punches where nothing seems to be wasted. His defense will no doubt be underrated but he is willing to tuck up tight and take punches to the gloves. His experience means that he is a flexible boxer capable of taking on whatever role necessary to take the win. He is being fast tracked for big fights in the division and spars with Daniel Jacobs. Expect great things from these Ukrainians but whereas Khytrov looks like he can be outboxed, Derevyanchenko has yet to show a weakness. In a weight where Canelo (within 12 months) and Golovkin reside it is perhaps hard to predict where the title will come from, but Derevyanchenko will surely find a way, even if it means shocking the boxing world by defeating a star.

_________________
Let's get ready to Rumble in the Jungle when the bells will Jingle to start the Bungle!

Donnie Nietes: Late To The Dance
By Cliff Rold

This Saturday, 34-year old former 105 and 108 lb. titlist Donnie Nietes (38-1-4, 22 KO) makes his long discussed debut in the flyweight division. He’ll face former 108 lb. titlist and one-time flyweight contender Edgar Sosa (52-9, 30 KO) to get his feet wet in the class (BeIn Espanol, 11 PM EST/8 PM PST). A couple years ago, Sosa might have been an intriguing test. More than a year removed from a shelling at the hands of Roman Gonzalez, it would be surprise if the 37-year old Sosa is strong competition.

Part of that is the quality of the man in front of Sosa. Nietes hasn’t made much of a splash in the US, though he makes his second appearance here in three starts. He’s been a gem to watch for fans in the Philippines. A thoughtful boxer with finishing ability, Nietes has notched a record of 14-0-1 in title fights and defeated several other titlist types from the lowest weight classes.

The flyweight division has been red-hot for most of this decade. Nietes would always have been a welcome addition. It was in discussion for a long time. Since at least 2014, there were rumblings from his camp that a move was imminent. Nietes challenging the likes of unified beltholder Juan Francisco Estrada or lineal kingpin Roman Gonzalez would have been hardcore manna.

The wait for Nietes to move up is no more. It’s finally happening…

_________________
Let's get ready to Rumble in the Jungle when the bells will Jingle to start the Bungle!

Mayweather Sr: Golovkin beats Canelo
Posted on September 21, 2016



By Dan Ambrose: 

Trainer Floyd Mayweather Sr. thinks that Saul “Canelo” Alvarez will share the same fate as welterweight Kell Brook when he gets inside the ring with IBF/IBO/WBA/WBC middleweight champion Gennady “GGG” Golovkin in the future. Mayweather Sr. says that Golovkin has a better chin than Canelo, and that he’ll smother him in the same way that he smothered Kell Brook recently in stopping him in the 5th round in their mega-fight on September 10 of this month at the O2 Arena in London, England.

Brook had his moments in the fight, but eventually, Golovkin smothered him in the 5th round, which resulted in Brook’s trainer throwing in the towel to save his fighter from being badly hurt.

Mayweather Sr. says that Canelo doesn’t want the fight with Golovkin, and he sees that as a sign that he knows he can’t beat him.

“I seen a little bit of the Kell Brook fight. I told everybody the man can fight,” said Mayweather Sr. to Fighthyoe.com. “Triple G can punch and Triple G can smother you. That’s what happened. The same thing is going to happen to Canelo. I think Triple G can take shots better than Canelo. You see it yourself. Canelo don’t want to fight.”

Canelo would have a hard time trying to escape the pressure from Golovkin. Canelo doesn’t move well around the ring, and he always needs to rest after he throws shots. For a 26-year-old, Canelo’s stamina is not great at all. Stamina-wise, Canelo is more like a fighter in his late 30s to early 40s, then a 26-year-old fighter.

We saw how gassed out Canelo was against Liam Smith, and we saw the same thing from him in his fights against Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Austin Trout. Canelo just cannot fight hard for the full three minutes of every round, so he tends to back off and go to the ropes. That’s not a strategy for Canelo. That’s basically something he needs to do because he doesn’t have the cardiovascular system to fight hard for the entire rounds when his opponents push a fast pace.

You have to agree with Mayweather Sr. that Golovkin would definitely have little problems cornering the 26-year-old Canelo and smothering him. We saw how former World Boxing Organization junior middleweight champion Liam Smith was able to force Canelo up against the ropes repeatedly in their fight last Saturday night at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Smith didn’t do anything special to get Canelo to retreat to the ropes other than push a fast pace. The problem that Smith had is when he did force Canelo to the ropes, he wasn’t throwing enough punches to give him problems.

Once Smith had Canelo against the ropes, he was waiting too long to get his shots off. Instead of throwing nonstop punches the way Golovkin would do, Smith would study Canelo and throw a few shots and then wait around for him to throw back. It was the wrong way to take advantage of Canelo. It would be different if Golovkin forced Canelo against the ropes. He would surely throw a rain of punches in the same way he did against Kell Brook earlier this month.

Canelo would obviously land some nice shots, but the pace of the fight would likely be too much for him. It would be a fight that would be fought at a pace two to three times faster than the pace of the Canelo-Smith fight. We saw how tired looking Canelo was in that fight, and Smith didn’t do much other than occasionally attack Canelo when he would stop throwing shots. Smith was trying to time his attacks when Canelo was resting, but what he should have done was attack the entire time and not just when Canelo was resting.

The problem with Smith waiting until stopped throwing shots was an obvious one. It meant that Smith was forced to take all the heavy shots from Canelo until he stopped throwing. Only then would Smith start throwing punches. It was a bad game plan, because it meant that Smith had to take a lot more punches than he was capable of taking. If Smith had thrown his punches at the same time Canelo did, he would have been able to keep from getting hit as much, and he would have worn him down faster.

If Golovkin gets Canelo up against the ropes all night long, I think it’s going to end badly for Canelo. He doesn’t punch as well when he’s backed up against the ropes. He may have dropped Smith with a cuffing right hand in round seven, but he doesn’t punch as hard.

Golovkin already has an advantage over Canelo in punching power, chin and punch placement, you can argue. If Golovkin is able to keep Canelo up against the ropes all night long, as we saw in the Canelo-Trout fight and much of the Canelo-Smith fight, then it’s going to end badly for the Mexican fighter.

At this point, it’s unclear whether the Canelo vs. Golovkin fight will ever take place. It would create big news if the fight were to happen in 2017, as the boxing world wants to see the fight, but I don’t think it’s going to happen unless Golovkin is given a better cut of the revenue. Giving him $10 million for the fight is probably not going to be enough. Canelo would be getting the lion’s share of the money that Golovkin helps bring in. There wouldn’t be equal sharing.

_________________
Let's get ready to Rumble in the Jungle when the bells will Jingle to start the Bungle!