Man of steel? Triple ‘G’ will visit New York’s M.S.G.
[BoxingGlove Notes]
In a keep busy championship fight, Gennady “3G” Golovkin ,W.B.A. & I.B.O. Middleweight Champion, with a fight record of 29 victories with 26 knockouts, will defend his crowns against Daniel “The Real Deal” Geale, 30-2, 16 k.o.’s and former 3 time world middleweight champ.
This international championship event will take place in Madison Square Garden, Manhattan, N.Y., on Saturday, July 26, 2014.
The international flavor is added because this is one of the few times that the main event is headed by non-Americans, thanks to Gary Shaw and K2 Promotions.
Gennady Golovkin is from Almaty, Kazakhstan, and the product of a Russian father and Korean mother, and Danny Geale is a Tasmanian from Mt. Annon, Australia, and in between fights they reside in their respective countries.
Looking at the entire fight card for that night we also have representatives from Cuba, London, France, and Nicaragua, almost like a boxing United Nations.
This fight with Golovkin defending his title is somewhat surprising because he was having a difficult time getting opponents because of his knockout record, until Geale accepted the challenge.
Geale, has a fight record; he’s fought the best and toughest boxers which include world champs, and while defending his I.B.F. 160 pound title he lost to Darren Barker by a split decision even though he knocked him down. At 33 years of age he represents the most dangerous threat to the 3G regime, because he is a speedy punisher to the head and body and is not a stationary target for Gennady, and has only one defeat.
Danny Geale stated to me at the last press conference that “I know that I am the underdog in this fight with Golovkin and I am not expected last no more than 5 rounds, but I am very tough. I trained very hard to win and re-gain my title by knockout or decision. I know 3G is a hard puncher but I have scored 16 knockouts and in a sense I am more experienced than him because I have fought and defeated tougher opponents that even he has not fought like Anthony Mundine, and Felix Sturm.”
Geale further stated with a Cheshire Cat grin, “I am ready for whatever Gennady brings to the table, and I am going home to Australia with the middleweight title.”
On the other hand Gennady Golovkin with a choir-boy look simply stated that he had trained very hard with his trainer Abel Sanchez in the Big Bear Training Camp to assure that he is successful in defeating Geale who he realizes is no push-over.
Gennady further stated that although he never looks past an opponent, especially Geale, his goal is to one day unify all the 160 pound titles. He noted that Miguel Cotto has 2 titles, and that Peter “Kid Chocolate” Quillin, has another middleweight title. “I want all of them”, he said with an impish grin.
“But,” he said, “first things first and that is to defeat Danny Geale who is a tough opponent. Everyone is talking about my 90% knockout ratio, the best in the history of the middleweight division and that I am the most feared fighter in the middleweight division”.
“I really don’t think about those things even though I have scored 16 straight knockouts. If they come, they come-knockouts-since they are part of the boxing business. I know that I will win by knockout or by decision”, Gennady stated confidently.
So there you have it my Black Star News readers, 2 determined hungry middleweights who want to be successful in the mecca of boxing, Madison Square Garden.
Most curious and with a “taste” of the unknown is the World Boxing Council Heavyweight Title Eliminator semi-final fight between Mike “The Rebel” Perez, from Ciego de Avila, Cuba, and a resident of Cork, Ireland, 20-0-1, 12 knockouts, and Bryant “By-By” Jennings from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 18-0, 10 knockouts.
He was a former Track, Football, Basketball, Shot-Put, star in his school, Ben Franklin High School, in Pennsylvania. Jennings was scouted by many Colleges as a defensive end, such as Michigan State, Syracuse, and Iowa State, but decided although late at age 24 to try boxing, compiling an amateur record of 13-4, and reaching the finals of the 2009 National Golden Gloves. Jennings then turned pro in February 26, 2010.
“This is my opportunity to prove to the world that I am a worthy fighter to own the heavyweight title, and the way to that goal is defeating Mike Perez who is the current W.B.C. Council (US-NBC) Champion” stated, Jennings, who further said, “I was not given much a of a chance to defeat my previous opponent, Artur Szpilka, but I knocked him out, so here I am with another chance to move forward.”
“Beating Perez will then make me the number 1 opponent for the winner of the W.B.A. Heavyweight title fight between Deontay Wilder and current W.B.A. Heavyweight champ, Bermane B-Ware Stiverne. This will be a dream come true for me, but I know Perez will not be an easy fight, he is a tough hard punching ex-Olympian with knockout power”.
As for Miguel Perez who seems to have over-come the emotional stress, and guilt of the near tragic fight with Russian heavyweight Magomed Abdusalamov, in which Abdusalamov went into a coma with a blood clot in his brain, he said that he was well prepared knowing what lies ahead if he won, “a chance to fight for the heavyweight championship of the world just like all the other ring greats, like Joe Louis, Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazer, right here in Madison Square Garden.”
“I’ve had to take control of my emotions because of what happened, realizing that it was not my fault, that this is a tough sport, and we were hitting each other very hard throughout the entire fight.”
“This is my life’s career since I defected from Cuba knowing that I didn’t have a chance to succeed there so I left just like the other boxers, Erislandy Lara, Guillermo Rigondeaux, and Yuriorkis Gamboa. Now I am free to pursue my life’s dream in this country of opportunities to become heavyweight champ of the world, and take the title back home to Ireland to my Wife and my 3 daughters.”
As I listened to Perez, it sounded more like a human interest story than a boxer’s interview having to emigrate to this country by defecting trying to seek his fortune by way of a boxing career.
It is also most directly similar to the undocumented people who daily migrate to the United States seeking a better honest life for them and their children but sadly are treated poorly and also deported.
Sad and touching, because this is the land of “plenty” for everyone no matter the race.
The rest of the fight card of 4 attractive fights of up and coming future boxing stars, includes 1 other title fight.
Ola Afolabi, 20-3-4, 9 k.o.’s London, England vs. Anthony Caputo Smith, 15-3, 10 k.o.’s, Philadelphia, PA—Cruiserweights—190 lb.
Glen Tapia, 20-1-1, 12 k.o.’s Passaic, N.J. vs. Salim Larbi, 19-5-2, 7 k.o.’s, Feyzin, Rhone, France, Jr. Middleweights-154 lb.
Dusty Hernandez-Harrison, 22-0, 12 k.o.’s, Washington, D.C. vs. Wilfredo Acuna, 15-14, 12 k.o.’s, Managua, Nicaragua—W.B.C. Youth Welterweight Title-147 lb.
Julian Rodrighuez, 3-0, 2k.o.’s vs. Hasbrouck Heights, N.J. vs. Yankton Southern, 4-5, 4 k.o.’s, Springfield, MO—Junior Welterweights-140 lb.
It should be a great fight night on Saturday at the mecca of boxing Madison Square Garden, and, just next month, August 9, 2014, we are “moving” across the river to Brooklyn’s Barclays Center which will feature 3 title fights.
Danny “Swift” Garcia, 28-0, 16 knockouts and current WBA & WBC 140 Pound Champion vs. “Lightning” Rod Salka, 19-3, 3 k.o.’s.
Lamont Peterson, 32-2-1, 16 knockouts, I.B.F. 140 Pound Champion vs. Edgar “El Chamaco” Santana, 29-4, 20 k.o.’s
Daniel “The Miracle Man” Jacobs, 27-1, 24 knockouts will challenge Australia’s Jarrod “Left Jab” Fletcher, 18-1, 10 k.o.’s for the vacant W.B.A. Middleweight Title.
This championship fight for Jacobs could become a “miracle” win for him since he had battled an almost career ending fight with cancer a few years ago which no doubt was his toughest fight, and he won.
