By: Hans Themistode
Gennadiy Golovkin was in complete disbelief when the scoreboard was first released after 12 tough rounds against Canelo Alvarez in 2018.
With the soon-to-be 40-year-old suffering his first career defeat, he turned the tables on a controversial outcome. While Golovkin went on to win his next three competitions, including an IBF world title match against Sergiy Derevyanchenko, Golovkin scoured the middleweights in search of his next enemy. . However, even as Golovkin fights around the world against a multitude of styles and opponents, he is surprised at first when he is told who he will face next.
On April 9, at the Super Arena in Saitama Japan, Golovkin will attempt to leave Japanese fans speechless as he takes on WBA champion, Ryota Murata. While it might not be the name he was expecting, Golovkin was happy nonetheless.
“I remember my first reaction,” Golovkin said. “I immediately thought it was going to be huge. That it will be big, spectacular, and truly memorable. Let’s say it’s going to be big. Battles in Japan have their own history. And, think again, now I’m going to be a part of that history. “
Among a long list of boxing events that took place on Japanese soil, James “Buster” Douglas recorded a memorable knockout victory at the time, undefeated and also fearsome heavyweight champion. , Mike Tyson, as a pretty big underdog in 1990.
Murata, like Douglas, will be forced to play a back-up against Golovkin. While Murata managed to win a gold medal in the 2012 Olympic Games, he spent the last few years of his career sitting on the sidelines. The now 36-year-old may have racked up consecutive wins over Steven Butler and Rob Brant, but he hasn’t been in the ring since 2019.
In the end, the victory for Golovkin meant more to him than just adding another world title to his already stacked résumé. If the current middleweight champion wins next weekend, he will be hoping that Alvarez will repeat his success on May 7, against WBA middleweight champion Dmitry Bivol.
With both of them winning, the couple has agreed to meet for the third and probably last time this September. Yet despite his longing for a final crack at Alvarez, Golovkin knew full well that if he didn’t focus on the man standing before him, his future plans would be swept away.
“I am focused on this fight. I don’t allow myself to think about anything else. I don’t jump over this fight. I don’t underestimate my opponents.”
