Golovkin camp says no verbal agreement for Canelo fight to be delayed until 2017

By Boxing News - 06/23/2016 - Comments

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By Dan Ambrose: Golden Boy Promotions CEO Oscar De La Hoya Tweeted on Wednesday that Gennady Golovkin’s promoter Tom Loeffler had agreed to wait until fall 2017 before matching him against Golden Boy fighter Saul “Canelo” Alvarez. However, there wasn’t an agreement from Golovkin’s management on this issue, says Fight News.

“According to the GGG camp, there is no verbal agreement, GBP/Oscar has misstated what has taken place,” said Fightnews.com.

Just why De La Hoya said there was an agreement from Loeffler on Canelo being allowed to wait until next is unclear. Perhaps De La Hoya misunderstood what Loeffler was saying during the meeting?

Even if there wasn’t an agreement between Golovkin’s promoter Loeffler and Golden Boy about having the Canelo-Golovkin takes place in fall 2017, there isn’t much he can do about it other than accepting it. Golden Boy and Canelo are in the driver’s seat as far as the fight goes. Team Golovkin can certainly give Canelo and Golden Boy an ultimatum that they either fight them in 2016 or they can forget it, but I think they’ll only be shooting themselves in the foot if they were to do that.

It would just give Canelo and Golden Boy an excuse never to have to make the fight. But if that’s what Team Golovkin wants to do, they can certainly make that move. Golovkin’s career will still be fine if he never faces Canelo. If Golovkin can stay unbeaten for the next five to eight more years, he’s going to become hugely wealthy even without the Canelo fight.

If Golovkin is confident enough to move forward with his career without the need for the Canelo mega-fight, then he can tell Golden Boy that he won’t wait until next year. It’s always possible that Golden Boy will give in and make the fight with Golovkin if they think that he’s drawn a line in the sand. My guess is they think Golovkin is needy and will take the fight even if they stretch it out two or three years from now in the future. But that’s why if Team Golovkin are going to give Canelo and Golden Boy Promotions a take it or leave it offer, then they need to be willing to walk away from the fight forever. It’s quite possible that in 2017, we’ll be seeing Golden Boy kick the can ahead to 2018, by saying that they need more time to let the fight marinate to make it bigger and because Canelo needing to continue to fill out to 160.

De La Hoya and Golden Boy Promotions wants the Canelo-Golovkin fight to take place next year in fall 2017 in order for the fight to marinate more to make it a bigger fight, and also to give the 25-year-old Canelo more time to fill out so that he can fight at the full weight of 160 for the middleweight division. The idea that Canelo needs more time to fill out would seem to be senseless, given that he reportedly is already rehydrating to the mid-170s. If he gains anymore weight, he might have a hard time making the 160lb limit. When you get a fighter that is 175 fighting at 160, it’s got to be tough on them in melting down to get to the limit.

Canelo will be fighting on September 17 against an opponent still to be determined in Las Vegas, Nevada. It’s said that Canelo could take the fight at 154, and will be looking to fight for a world title. WBO junior middleweight champion Liam Smith is the guy that many boxing fans believe Canelo will be fighting, because he’s seen as a paper champion and the weak link compared to the other champions.

The delays for the Canelo vs. Golovkin fight helps the younger Canelo and hurts Golovkin. Not only is he the older fighter, but he’s also the one with a smaller fan base. By fighting Canelo now and taking his scalp, Golovkin would become a bigger name and likely make more money for each fight. By having the fight delayed, Golovkin loses out on money he could be making each time he fights. It’s a win-win for Golden Boy to delay the Canelo-Golovkin fight for as long as possible. They come out ahead if they wait until Golovkin is old and no longer the same fighter he is today. That’s why Team Golovkin needs to make a decision whether they want to keep being strung along like this. They can stop it if they give an ultimatum to Canelo and Golden Boy by telling that they either fight this year or forget about the fight ever taking place. It’s not as if Golovkin hasn’t already been waiting for a year now for his fight against Canelo.