Saunders hints at potential ‘Mega Fight’ with either Golovkin or Canelo

By Boxing News - 01/25/2017 - Comments

Image: Saunders hints at potential ‘Mega Fight’ with either Golovkin or Canelo

By Adam Godfrey: WBO Middleweight Champion Billie Joe Saunders yesterday told Sky Sports: ‘I have a big, big fight coming up next and it’s a fight the fans will genuinely love although it looks as though I will have to travel. We just need to sit down and finalise a couple of small details and then it will be finished. I’ve been waiting for this big fight for a long time – since I won the world title at the end of 2015 – and I hope it will be a game-changer for me’.

Fight fans will be taking pleasure in speculating who Saunders is in negotiations with, with the names Golovkin and Alvarez at the top of the list. That Saunders has announced that he is likely to be travel suggests that a rematch with Chris Eubank Jr is unlikely at the current time, and that he can be ruled out as the opponent hinted at. It is also reasonable to deduce that, if there is a glimmer of hope that the fight may take place in the UK, Golovkin is the more likely of the other two names, due to his profile having risen significantly in Britain following his September 2016 bout with Kell Brook. Golovkin is, in all probability, a bigger name in the UK than Alvarez, and may be more willing to travel to these shores if needs be.

Saunders looked poor in his first defence of his WBO title in December 2016 against fringe fighter Artur Akavov (by his own admission), to the extent that Golden boy CEO and Chairman Oscar De La Hoya suggested that any future financial offer for him to fight Alvarez would be half of what it was before the Akavov fight. He will be keen to be seen as being more active now that he is free of injury. Should he snare either GGG or Canelo for the second half of 2017 he’ll seek to tune up against another opponent unlikely, on paper, to have a realistic chance of beating him. GGG and Canelo both have title fights in the Spring and, assuming that each manages to hold onto their strap, they will probably only consider fighting Saunders if he holds onto his own title (Golovkin especially, intent as he is on completing his Middleweight belt collection).

Providing Saunders is truthful when he speaks of a potential ‘Mega fight’ shortly being made, there are no names other than those of Golovkin or Canelo that immediately seem to fit the bill. If Saunders word is his bond, then both of those fights may indeed be within touching distance. Of course, it is also entirely possible that these recent statements are merely attempts at remaining in the public eye following a recent long lay-off and disappointing come-back fight.

In another statement, Saunders recently announced that he’ll leave no stone unturned in the hunt for victory should he face unified champion Golovkin, even if this means fighting dirty to chalk up the win.

Of the Kazakh knock out artist, Boxingscene.com quotes Saunders as proclaiming ‘Golovkin is the best fighter on the planet, but to be the best you’ve got to beat the best. Without giving too much away, a lot of people, when they get in the ring with him, they are already a beaten man. When he’s beating them they just give in. I won’t be bullied by him – I’ll run an elbow into him if I have to. I haven’t seen anyone box him who has got a little bit of stand up’.

Many would see Saunders as a heavy underdog against Golovkin, and as such it is unlikely to be a surprise that the Hatfield native would consider using any tool at his disposal to disrupt Golovkin’s rhythm and punching output. Contrarily, such statements could be viewed as an admission of defeat in and of themselves, should Saunders have such little faith in his own ability to beat ‘GGG’ fairly. Golovkin himself received some criticism for striking David Lemieux even after the Canadian had taken a knee following a body-shot during their October 2015 bout, although Golovkin was clearly on top during that encounter and had little need to gain an unfair advantage by striking an already downed opponent. Golovkin is not considered a dirty fighter, and the ‘bullying’ that Saunders refers to is simply a reflection of the Kazak’s come-forward, high pressure style.

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