On 3/18/17 the two best middleweights in the world square off for the unified championship of the world at Madison Square Garden (broadcast on HBO Pay-Per-View). WBC, WBA and WBO champion Gennady “GGG” Golovkin (36-0, 33 KO) of Kazakhstan takes on WBA champion Daniel “Miracle Man” Jacobs (33-1, 29 KO) of Brooklyn.
You may logically ask how there can be two WBA champions. The sanctioning bodies’ corruption knows no limits. They declared Golovkin their “super champion” and Jacobs their “regular Champion” based on a shameless thirst for sanctioning fees.
BTW-the WBA is does not stand alone in this practice. However, this corruption actually plays well for a change to boxing fans as the WBA’s shenanigans ended up making this fight mandatory.
I once again have to call this the unified championship rather than the undisputed championship because in the cloudy alphabet soup of sanctioning bodies creating confusion in the sport, a Brit named Billy Joe Saunders was able to claim the IBF’s version of the middleweight crown. Saunders has developed quite a reputation of calling for Golovkin between fights, but never managing to get his name on a contract for a battle which would crown an undisputed champ.
If you wonder why the Ultimate Fighting Championship is passing boxing in popularity you can look to this kind of s**t. Just like boxing, the UFC has good and bad fights; they have events that live up to expectations, and events that disappoint.
The difference is you are not keeping your title in the UFC without taking on the next best contender in your weight class. People easily know who the champ in each weight is.
Now, back to our combatants. Gennady Golovkin is the Marvin Hagler of his time. Though a more powerful puncher but not as complete a fighter as Hagler, he is a no-nonsense knockout artist (23 straight inside the distance) intent on dominating whoever will get in the ring with him.
Like Hagler, he is finding it difficult to lure worthy big-name foes to advance his stardom. Hagler eventually got that in 1983 when Roberto Duran jumped at the opportunity.
As a star to hardcore fans, GGG has had some minor endorsements due to his ticket sales and HBO ratings. However, less than a month shy of his 35th birthday he is still not a household name because he has not fought any (to no fault of his own).
The Kazakh is even extremely engaging outside the ring. He has this goofy Mad Magazine look to him to go along with a well-mannered heavy accent. Unlike Hagler, if you saw this guy on the street and didn’t know any better, you wouldn’t be in the least bit intimidated.
That would be a mistake though! This guy is an all-time pound-for-pound puncher with both hands. Personally I have not seen such spectacular knockout power since a young Mike Tyson burst onto the scene.
The difference is one-punch knockout artists often tend to be one-trick ponies or mentally weak in the face of adversity. Though not slick, GGG has tremendous fundamental footwork and has displayed a granite chin. Just ask David Lemieux (probably the next best middleweight right now after these two) whom Golovkin stopped in the 8th round a year and a half ago in the Garden.
Daniel Jacobs is a classic boxer-puncher with speed and power in both hands. Hailing from the same Brownsville that produced Tyson and Riddick Bowe, Jacobs brings his own impressive streak of wins inside the distance with 12.
His biggest win in the ring was a first round stoppage of Peter Quillin in December, 2015. Jacobs’ one hiccup came in a KO loss to Dmitry Pirog on 7/31/10 in fight which he was leading.
While Quillin was his biggest win inside the ring, his truly greatest victory came when beat a May, 2011 diagnosis of cancer in his spinal chord. After knocking out cancer, he has knocked out every opponent since.
I do not expect this fight to do a large PPV number. Golovkin is a PPV fighter with the right dance partner.
Though the Jacobs is in my opinion the #2 middleweight in the world right now behind GGG, he is not yet a PPV fighter. Combine that with HBO continuing to be cheap with it’s 24/7 series, only doing one installment for this fight and the college hoops, you are probably looking at pedestrian PPV buys. The fight should be on regular HBO.
But in the ring this is the best middleweight fight that can be made in boxing. The fight fans are clamoring for outside a potential Floyd Mayweather-Conor McGreggor circus is Golovkin vs. Saul “Canelo” Alvarez.
The problem is Canelo has taken a page from Mayweather’s book, who took a page from Sugar Ray Leonard’s book of waiting out dangerous opponents until they show clear signs of decline. However, the reality is though Canelo is a good fighter, he is not in those guys’ league.
I believe Jacobs is a better fighter than Canelo and a more legitimate threat to Golovkin’s supremacy at this point. The reason fans want that fight is to watch the prima donna get beat into the hospital.
So, enough about guys that don’t want to fight. Let’s talk about these willing combatants who conduct themselves properly both in and out of the ring.
The key to victory for Golovkin is to be himself. He needs to apply relentless pressure, cut off the ring and work his way in with the jab. Even if Jacobs’ jab is quicker and sharper, he can disrupt it with his own.
If GGG lunges in with big shots before jabbing his way into range, he will pay a stiff price. He also needs to commit to the body to slow Jacobs down.
The biggest key for Jacobs is to box. He can punch but his chin is suspect. A straight firefight with GGG would be suicidal for the Miracle Man. He should use his speed and athleticism to create angles where he can turn the Kazakh and make him pay when he misses.
Another factor in Jacobs favor is his size. He is the bigger and possibly stronger guy even though he is not the more powerful puncher.
So, he should pick his spots where he makes Golovkin back up at times. Golovkin is not the type of fighter who is comfortable fighting while backing up.
One other thing-Jacobs should not ignore the body. Golovkin is a vicious body puncher and body punchers don’t like taking punishment to the body.
So, how do I see this fight paying out? First off Golovkin has questions to answer from his last performance (5th round stoppage of welterweight champion Kell Brook).
Not all that different from Hagler’s last victory (a hard fought 11th round win over John “The Beast” Maghabi), Golovkin did not look himself against Brook. There were rumors before the fight that Golovkin was sick, which he denied.
Golovkin looked sloppy and fatigued. He lunged in with power shots attempting to end it with one punch. He ended it, but he took punishment himself.
Is Golovkin showing some age at 34 like Hagler did at 31? Or was it just an off night? One thing is for sure. If Golovkin fights like that against Jacobs his title reign will end barring one big shot.
But I am going to believe that last fight was an aberration. I believe he will be his normal seek and destroy self.
Jacobs size, speed and athleticism will put him up early. I believe GGG will feel Jacobs’ power. However, I believe Golovkin will keep denting Jacobs with his own power even in rounds he loses similar to how Julio Cesar Chavez systematically broke down Meldrick Taylor in their first meeting.
Once Jacobs begins to slow down a bit his chin will be tested. He has been knocked out. I am not saying the Miracle Man has a porcelain beard, but he is in with a historical puncher.
Taking all of this into account, along with the fact that Golovkin has never tasted defeat, I will go with a mid-to late round stoppage for the Kazakh warrior. Talk soon.
-Marksman
PS: Before the fight, if you are tired of watching men slap hands after every free throw even if they miss, the NCAA Wrestling Finals (8 PM EST on ESPN) is the best sporting event of the year that few realize. If you like real tough guys who are real student athletes, you will be hooked!