By Scott Gilfoid: WBA Super World middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin’s trainer Abel Sanchez notes that Golovkin’s next opponent Martin Murray (29-1-1, 12 KOs) likes to fight behind his clam-shell guard when he fights. Sanchez thinks that’s going to lead the 32-year-old Murray to getting chopped down lightning quickly on February 21st if he tries that tactic against Golovkin at the Salle des Étoiles, in Monte Carlo, Monaco.
If Murray comes out swinging looking to go out on his shield and make a fight of it, Sanchez sees the British fighter last 3 or 4 rounds at best. But if Murray comes out hiding behind his clam-shell guard like he’s done in fights against Sergio Martinez and Felix Sturm, for example, then Sanchez sees this fight ending quickly with Murray being reduced to a pile of rubble on the canvas in Monte Carlo.
“Martin proved that he’s an A level fighter,” Sanchez said. “If Martin comes out to fight, if Martin comes out to win, then we’re looking at maybe 3 or 4 rounds. If Martin gets behind his shell, then maybe sooner than that.”
Hopefully, Murray’s trainer has talked him and stressed the importance of him not wasting his opportunity by sitting behind his high guard against Golovkin, because that sparring partner type approach won’t work for Murray. Heck, it didn’t even work against a nearly 40-year-old Sergio Martinez, who came into the fight with Murray with a torn up right knee and who ending up suffering a broken left power hand in the fight from nailing Murray so many times to the head.
If Murray couldn’t even beat Sergio Martinez under those circumstances, you can only imagine what a skilled puncher like Golovkin will do to him. Golovkin isn’t coming into the fight with a leg injury and he’s not old like Martinez, and he doesn’t have a hand or wrist injury.
Murray will need to forget about his clam-shell defense and look to actually throw some punches if he doesn’t want to be left on the canvas holding his midsection and wondering what happened to him.
This is probably the last shot for Murray in terms of him fighting for a world title. He’s already twice fought for world titles and come up empty times. He’s done precious little to deserve this third time, as he beat a handful of mediocre fighters to get this third title shot. If Golovkin destroys Murray, I think he’ll too old to earn a 4th shot at a title and will have to be content with just being a contender.
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