Wanting again on the legacy of former WBA, WBC, and IBF World Middleweight champion Gennadiy ‘GGG’ Golovkin, who got here out of the 2004 Olympics with a Silver Medal, he turned professional in Germany in Might 2006, profitable his first ten fights by stoppage. He later defeated Ian ‘The Cobra’ Gardner, 20-3.
Three fights later, GGG began a twenty-three-knockout profitable streak, ending with an in depth win over Danny ‘Miracle Man’ Jacobs, 32-1, at Madison Sq. Backyard in his seventeenth title protection.
GGG received the WBA Middleweight title, stopping Nilson ‘Blade’ Tapia, 14-2-1, in December 2010. A few of GGG’s title defenses have been over former IBF gentle center champ Kassim ‘The Dream’ Ouma, 27-7-1, IBF USBA champ Lajuan Simon, 23-3-2, including the vacant IBO title, and Grzegorz Proksa, 28-1.
In January 2013, he was coaching for Philly’s Gabe ‘King’ Rosado, 21-5. He used sparring companions Philly’s Dhafir ‘No Concern’ Smith and Farah Ennis. Smith advised me, ‘GGG hits like a heavyweight.’ Smith had been in camp twice with tremendous center champ Andre ‘S.O.G. Ward’ and stated it might be an in depth struggle between them.
I coated the struggle on the Madison Sq. Backyard Theater, giving Rosado one of many first six rounds earlier than being stopped within the seventh spherical.
Then GGG traveled to Japan to knock out Nobuhiro Ishida, 24-8-2. He then knocked out Matthew Macklin, 29-4. Two fights later, going through Curtis ‘Cerebral Murderer’ Stevens, 25-3, who claimed he would knock out GGG, Stevens discovered himself on the canvas within the second spherical and stopped within the eighth.
GGG stopped former IBF and WBA champ Daniel ‘Actual Deal’ Geale, 30-2, then added the WBC interim title, knocking out champion Marco Antonio Rubio, 59-6-1. He defeated Martin Murray, 29-1-1, Willie Monroe, Jr., 19-1, and added the IBF title, stopping champ David Lemieux, 34-2, in 2015. Then stopped Dominic Wade, 18-0, and Kell Brook, 36-0, earlier than defeating Jacobs.
In September of 2017, he was held to a extremely disputed cut up draw by former gentle center champ Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez, 49-1-1, whom he chased for the final seven rounds. Then he knocked out Vanes ‘Nightmare’ Martirosyan, 36-3-1, earlier than giving ‘Canelo’ a rematch a 12 months since their first assembly.
For some cause GGG used a boxer-puncher fashion within the rematch as a substitute of the puncher one he used of their earlier struggle and misplaced for the primary time to ‘Canelo’, by majority resolution. As a substitute ‘Canelo’s promoter delay the rematch for 4 years.
GGG received 4 fights whereas ready for the rematch, with the ultimate one in Japan stopping Ryota Murata, 16-2, in April of 2022. His third assembly with Canelo got here in September, and he misplaced a fairly shut resolution. Each regarded like they have been going by means of the motions in a struggle delay for 4 years. It could be GGG’s last struggle, ending with a 42-2-1 report with 37 stoppages.
GGG from Karaganda, Kazakhstan, is ready for his induction into the IBF Corridor of Fame. The way in which he has performed himself out and in of the ring makes him a credit score.
