Gennady Golovkin will defend his world middleweight titles against Kell Brook on September 10th at London’s O2 Arena.
The first Elephant in the room for this up and coming clash is the difference in size. Golovkin holds 3 middle weight championship belts, and is the king of the 160 pound division.
Brook on the other hand is currently a welter weight champion weighing in a mere 147 pounds at the weigh in.
At first glance one could be concerned for Brooks’s health, somewhat similar to when Khan had the stones, and or foolishness to face Canelo Alvarez.
I don’t know about you, but when I first saw Khan hit the canvass, for a split second I thought he was dead. My first thought was that Oscar De La Hoya should be put in prison for putting together such a mismatch.
Luckily for Brook there are some major differences between these two events.
For one the evidence leads to Brook being much more durable than Khan. Khan had been knocked out by 135 pound, and 140 pound fighters in the past, and was notorious for having a suspect chin. Brook on the other hand has never lost consciousness, or been stopped in a prize fight. All signs as of yet would point to Brook having a sturdy beard.
The size gap is also not as severe.
Khan only had a couple fights at 147, and already looked too small for the division. Brook, has had a few 154 pound bouts, and even at 154 seemed the larger, stronger man vs. his opponents.
According to Brook, and his team he started his camp for Golovkin at 185 pounds, making him a pretty huge guy for the Welter weight division. Back in 2014 there was a series of articles about Brook working with sport science laboratories.
He employed a small team of experts in strength and conditioning, physiology, nutrition and psychology. By measuring every metric imaginable, and using the most advanced techniques in the game, he is able to be incredible conditioned, strong, and lean.
He does have a disadvantage of at least 1 inch In height, and reach vs. Gennady which is apparent in their press photos, however Brook is the more muscled, and lean of the two.
Golovkin is a fairly small middle weight. He normally comes in fight night from 168 to 170 with only one exception. When he fought Rubio he had just had his longest career lay off to visit his homeland of Kazakhstan for his father’s funeral ritual. The 4 months off led him to blow up, and he came it at a career high of 173 on fight night.
The reality is that there is a very minuscule difference in their actual size. When they enter the ring September 10th size will not be an issue, or a deciding factor in the match up.
The real elephant is not size at all, but more accurately GGG’s power. His opponents seem to wilt after they feel his constant touch.
Brook has never faced an opponent as a pro that was allowed to weigh as much as 160 pounds at weigh in, much less one with legendary power. He normally enjoys the advantage of being the stronger, bigger man in the ring; however in his bout with Golovkin these advantages will be non-existent.
One thing Brook would like to duplicate from the Khan vs Canelo fight is Khans early success.
When Khan faced Canelo, he seemed to easily outbox his opponent in the early rounds. For a moment it appeared as though GBP had made a vital mistake putting their golden goose in with the much faster Khan.
This is where it gets interesting.
If Brook can win the first few rounds against Golovkin he will not have to worry about getting caught with a single punch that curbs all of his efforts.
His tremendous conditioning, will not only allow him to be durable against the storm of Golovkin body attack, but also keep him able to maintain a superior pace through 12 rounds. He also has the main tool to face a pressure fighter. He has power in both hands which seems to only increase. He has stopped 7 of his last 8 foes. Even though Golovkin so far seems impervious to punches, we have seen in the past he respects power. He didn’t just walk through the front door with Lemieux.
If the first few rounds pass, and Brook uses his speed advantage to put rounds in the bank, he has all of the tools to hear the final bell, and make for an interesting decision.
Not many are picking Brook to win this fight. Currently Golovkin looks unbeatable, and is riding a wave of mystique comparable only to a prime Mike Tyson.
Brook does not know defeat, and is a world champion. He is in optimal physical and mental condition, with speed, power and slick skills. There are only a couple explanations for counting out a fighter of his caliber vs. any opponent. Either you are buying the false myth of a Canelo vs. Khan size advantage, or you are entangled in the Golovkin legend. Otherwise you are aware that September 10th two undefeated, world champions will enter the ring to put it all on the line.
Buster Douglas was almost 10 times the underdog Brook is, but he was able to prove that Iron Mike was a mere mortal. Even the boogie man has a weakness, and win or lose one thing is certain. Brook will show up to win and it will be a “big drama show.”
By Adam Kallanous