Will hard-hitters Gennady Golovkin and David Lemieux come out swinging?
[BoxingGlove Notes]
After the heavily promoted but very disappointing “Fight of the Century” between now retired, Floyd “Money” Mayweather, Jr. and Manny “PacMan” Pacquiao, Saturday, May 2nd 2015 at the M.G.M. Grand Arena & Hotel, Las Vegas, it is very possible that we will witness the “real” fight of the century, Saturday, October 17, 2015, at the mecca of boxing, Madison Square Garden, New York City. The perfect arena for it, and better late than never.
This championship fight for all of the middleweight belts minus the ones owned by current leading Middleweight Champion, Miguel Cotto, will be between the 2 hardest punchers in the middleweight division, bar-non.
Gennady “3G” Golovkin, Karagand, Kazakhstan, 33-0, 30 knockouts, and W.B.A., I.B.O., and current W.B.C. “Interim” Middleweight Champion will be challenged by David Lemieux, Montreal, Canada,34-2, 31 k.o.’s and also current I.B.F. Middleweight Champion.
By their boxing pedigree or maybe a ferocious ring “D.N.A.”, this fight on paper alone promises to be the anticipated middle of the ring “phone booth war” which will obligate the assigned referee after he gives his instructions, to step aside to a neutral corner, and also of course, know how to count to ten.
Golovkin and Lemieux bring a combined knockout record of 61 k.o.’s and a win-loss total of 67 victories and only 2 defeats. Those 2 defeats, 1 by knockout, were suffered by Lemieux early in his career. Since then Lemieux has won 9 straight fights, 7 by knockout.
Let’s analyze the 2 combatants:
Gennady “3G” Golovkin is a former Olympian with an amateur fight record of 345 -5 and son of a Russian father and Korean mother, who when he turned professional in 2006 aspired to follow in the Klitschko Brother’s footsteps.
Without a doubt he has succeeded that dream because at the present time 3G is undefeated, 33-0, 30 knockouts, and scored 20 straight knockouts in his last 20 title defenses retaining his 3 world titles. 3G is regarded as the most “feared” middleweight in the ring to date. According to many observers he gets better and more deadly from fight to fight, with the astute training of his long time trainer, Abel Sanchez.
Sanchez stated that the reason for 3G’s success “is because I have added a ‘Mexican Style’ aggression to his ‘Kazakh Mode’ of fighting, and he not only is a good listener, a hard worker, but, he is also determined to get better with every fight.”
In the opposite corner we have David Lemieux, 34-2, 31 k.o.’s. , a 3 time world amateur champ, son of a Lebanese mother and French father, who turned professional at 18 after turning down an opportunity to fight in the Beijing Olympics. He fought the majority of his pro fights in Canada, becoming a fan favorite, after winning 25 straight fights, scoring 20 knockouts.
Lemieux stated, “I always train very hard for my fights but harder for this one because when I win, I get 3G’s 3 belts and will face the winner of the Miguel Cotto vs. Canelo Alvarez title fight in November, 2015. Next year I will fight the winner for all of the belts.”
Lemieux further declared that “I am more motivated for this one because Trainer Sanchez said that I am so easy to hit that 3G will knock me out in 4 rounds. Sanchez forgot that I have punching power, and I am not afraid of 3G”.
This is a championship fight that although 3G is the favorite of many, they recognize the fact that Lemieux’s aggressive fighting style is very similar to Golovkin. They are both head and body punishers with explosive punching power with the ability to throw punches at a very rapid pace, and are very defensive minded.
Because of the close similarity of these 2 fighting champs, I would have to say that this is a “pick-em” fight for the present time, awaiting as to which Lemieux or which Golovkin will show up on fight night, October 17th at M.S.G. , and be victorious.
The 4 “benevolent” promoters, K2 Promotions, Golden Boy Promotions, GGG Promotions, and Eye of the Tiger Management, have additionally “gifted” us with a semi-final championship fight that, it in itself is worthy of main event pay-per-view status. Two great fights for the price of one.
This semi-final fight showcases the newest inductee into the pound for pound boxing category, vs. a veteran, and a former 2 time world champ.
Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez, 43-0, 37 knockouts, and current W.B.C. & Ring Magazine Flyweight Champion, from La Esperanza, Managua, Nicaragua, will make his Madison Square Garden, New York City debut defending his titles against Hawaiian born, Brian “The Hawaiian Punch” Viloria, 36-4-2NC, 22 k.o.,’s.
Many future ring successes are expected from Gonzalez since the lighter weight boxers, especially Flyweights have been overshadowed by the bigger fighters, and this baby-faced champion who could be mistaken for a “Choir-Boy”, but is a “ring assassin”, brings excitement and recognition to the lighter weights.
Chocolatito Gonzalez who got his nickname because of his dark complexion and because his father, Luis, a boxer and also dark skinned was name “Chocolate”, is a very hard punching punishing undefeated fighter who made his pro debut in 2005, scoring 16 straight knockouts in his first 16 fights, after an outstanding amateur career, with also an undefeated record of 88-0.
His opponent, Viloria the veteran 2000 Sydney ex-Olympian with an impressive 230-8 amateur fight record, brings a lot of experience to this fight which no doubt will give Gonzalez problems. After his pro debut in 2001, Viloria of Filipino decent won 20 fights in a row scoring 12 k.o.’s, before his first defeat.
My impression of Viloria is that he might be a little “shop-worn” due to the much tougher fights he has had in his career as opposed to Gonzalez’s opponents, who might be questionable since most of his fights were in Nicaragua.
I will go with the veteran Brian Viloria who might still have some gas left in the tank to score an upset by decision, and spoil Chocolatito Gonzalez’s M.S.G. debut.
EDITORIAL COMMENT:
Talking boxing to avid old time fight fan Manuel, he told me and I agreed that this fight between 3G and Lemieux reminded him of the 3 great but vicious fights between Middleweight Champion, Tony “Man of Steel” Zale and Rocky Graziano during the years of 1946 through 1948. Zale won the 1st & 3rd by knockout, and Graziano won the 2nd also by a k.o.
I remember that these 3 fights of 15 rounds each were so war- like, that it seemed that Graziano and Zale would pick up where they left off in the previous fight. They were indeed 3 hard fought punishing fights which forced Tony Zale into retirement.
The same fistic electric climate is what I expect of 3G Golovkin and Lemieux in only 1 fight.
Black Star News readers who is your choice or the “survivor”, of this fight and why?
