Canelo has just done what no other fighter can say they have…beat Gennady “GGG” Golovkin. The first judge saw it as a tie, as they scored it 114-114, but the other two suggested Canelo deserved the majority decision win, through a score of 115-113 each.
It was a year ago, on this very blog that I expressed my extreme displeasure towards what was one of the most controversial fights in the history of boxing, “Canelo v. GGG 1.” That fight was ruled a draw, when GGG clearly had the upper hand over Canelo Alvarez and should’ve ultimately won the fight. Time passed and fans were eager to watch the second bout between these two talented fighters. It was Canelo’s PED suspension, though, that caused further delay as to when the PPV was to be scheduled and forced fans to question whether or not the event would even occur. After months of no word from Golden Boy Promotions, or either of the two fighters, the fight was formally announced to take place in September of 2018. These countless delays on the scheduling of the event and lack of hints given by the Golden Boy officials, just made me more anxious to see who would end up the winner of this anticipated battle, after it was formally announced.
Now post-fight, I find myself both curious and excited about what is ahead to come as a result of this bout. Sure, Canelo won as the underdog which made many (including myself), extremely excited, but what about GGG? The momentum of this fight was continuously fluctuating between the two fighters and could’ve been easily argued in favor for either Canelo or GGG at its conclusion. As soon as the judges’ scorecards were announced and Canelo Alvarez’s arm was raised, GGG pulled off the unthinkable and walked out of the ring, immediately into his locker room. If you know anything about Golovkin, you would realize this is very uncharacteristic of a man that fights with respect for his opponent, and is usually gracious to him at the end of a bout. This specific fight though hit him hard, not because he lost, but how close he was to winning.
The result of “Canelo v. GGG 2” has all the makings of allowing for a third and final fight between these two. This event will finally provide closure to both the fans and fighters alike, as it will showcase whether Canelo is truly the better of the two, or if his win was a fluke.