Lemieux: I’m fine with being underdog against Golovkin

By Boxing News - 10/07/2015 - Comments

1-golovkin (4)By Dan Ambrose: IBF middleweight champion David Lemieux (34-2, 31 KOs) says he’s totally not worried in the least about being the underdog in his fight against IBO/WBA 160lb champion Gennady “GGG” Golovkin (33-0, 30 KOs) in their fight in a week and a half from now on HBO pay-per-view from Madison Square Garden in New York.

Lemieux says being the underdog will make it that much better when he wins the fight against the 33-year-old Kazakhstan fighter. Besides not being worried about being the underdog, Lemieux says he’s not afraid of Golovkin’s punching power.

Lemieux, 26, believes that his own punching power will be the great equalizer when he gets inside the ring with the unbeaten Golovkin.

“On Oct. 17 history will be made,” Lemieux said. “Golovkin is a very good fighter, but we’re also a very good fighter. Being the underdog will make it better when I win. I’m the big underdog in this fight and it’s fine by me. I have a lot of confidence in myself. The fighter with the biggest heart will be the difference. We’re both big punchers. Let’s see beyond that. Power is not something that frightens me.”

The history part is hard to understand. It’s not as if Lemieux will be breaking records if he beats Golovkin. The only thing he’ll do is take away Golovkin’s unbeaten record and prevent him from moving forward to fight the winner of the Saul “Canelo” Alvarez vs. Miguel Cotto fight. That’s about the only history that will be written in that fight.

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Lemieux needs to worry about Golovkin’s punching power because he’s never been blessed with great defensive skills, and if Golovkin is able to land his big punches as easily as Lemieux’s last two opponents Gabriel Rosado and Hassan N’Dam, then this fight could be over very quickly.

Even if Lemieux is somehow able to handle Golovkin’s big punches without dropping for the 10 count, there will still be the danger of him suffering a cut or getting one of his eyes closed by the shots. A bad enough cut or a closed eye will give the ringside doctor a reason to stop the contest and give Golovkin the victory.

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Lemieux says that his previous losses to Marco Antonio Rubio and Joachim Alcine back in 2011 are totally “irrelevant’ as far as he’s concerned. Lemieux feels that he’s a much better fighter than he was back then when he fought those two fighters. I don’t know if Lemieux is improved. He looked a lot like the same fighter that lost to those two guys in his last fight against N’Dam in the last six rounds of the contest. Lemieux faded badly in the last six rounds, and only won the fight because had knocked N’Dam down four times in the first half of the fight.

Lemieux won the fight by the scores of 115-109, 115-1109 and 114-110. It’s pretty surprising that the scores were that close after Lemieux knocked N’Dam down four times, but it tells you how badly he faded in the last half of the fight. Lemieux was fortunate that N’Dam didn’t have the punching power to worry him because if he had Golovkin’s power, Lemieux likely would have been finished off much in the same way that he was against Rubio in 2011.

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