Although the Floyd Mayweather-Conor McGregor fight proved to be entertaining, most boxing fans realize that it wasn’t as competitive as a proper boxing match. The Gennady Golovkin vs. Saul “Canelo” Alvarez fight is what boxing fans have been waiting for. Let’s take a closer look at the showdown.

 

How Good Is Golovkin?

That’s something that’s been asked for a long time now. Golovkin – or GGG, as he’s known – is ESPN’s No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the sport. The defending WBA (Super), WBC, IBF and IBO middleweight champion is 37-0 and he typically demolishes his competition.

But there are some question marks with Golovkin. To start, he hasn’t exactly fought big names in the sport. His latest wins have come against Daniel Jacobs, Kell Brook, Dominic Wade and David Lemieux. And even in his last two fights, he looked a bit flawed in his fifth-round knockout win over Brook and many people felt he should have lost by decision to Jacobs. Alvarez is going to be the best opponent that Golovkin has faced, so we’re going to find out.

 

Is Alvarez On the Rise?

While Alvarez isn’t as high on the pound-for-pound lists like GGG, there’s no question that he’s one of the best middleweights in the game. Most people have him and GGG ranked as the two best middleweights.

Alvarez is an impressive 49-1-1 in his career and his only loss was to Mayweather Jr. With Mayweather fully retired, Alvarez has a chance to be the face of boxing going forward. He has fought some big names of late and has had no problems turning everyone aside. In his last six fights, he beat Julio Cesar Chavez, Liam Smith, Amir Khan, Miguel Cotto and James Kirkland.

 

The Entertainment Factor

This fight is about as big as it gets. Golovkin may not have fought the caliber of fighters that Alvarez has, but that’s because so many elite boxers have dodged him – including Mayweather and Alvarez. Alvarez could have fought him in 2016 or even earlier this year, but he continued to avoid Golovkin.

Neither of these fighters dance or play defense. These are two sluggers who are going to keep coming forward and throwing haymakers. Golovkin applies constant pressure and throws power punches until his opponent can’t take anymore. Only one fighter has been able to go the distance with GGG in his last 24 fights – that’s impressive.

Golovkin is a small -155 favourite for this bout, but keep in mind that he’s eight years older than Alvarez. We’ll see if he can remain at the top of the sport, or if the younger Alvarez, who’s priced at +125, can claim the throne.

 

*Odds as of September 5, 2017