By Jim Dower: Middleweight champion Gennady ‘GGG’ Golovkin (38-0-1, 34 KOs) annihilated voluntary challenger Vanes Martirosyan (36-4-1, 21 KOs) in knocking him out in the 2nd round on Saturday night at the StubHub Center in Carson, California.
After a slow 1st round in which Martirosyan appeared to get the better of the action, Golovkin came storming out for the 2nd round and hurt Vanes with a left hook that backed him up against the ropes. Golovkin followed with a big right hand to the head that further hurt Martirosyan.
Golovkin then followed with three hard shots that landed flush to the face of Martirosyan sending him down on the canvas face first. Martirosyan tried to get up but then collapsed on the canvas face first and couldn’t get up. The referee Jack Reiss then waived it off. The official time of the stoppage was at 1:53 of round 2.
In round 1, Martirosyan did a lot of moving and clinching to keep Golovkin from landing his power shots. Although Martirosyan had promised that he was going to fight in the “Mexican style” for the fight with GGG to brawl with him, he failed to do so. It appeared that Martirosyan attempted to follow the blueprint created by Kell Brook in how to fight GGG by running, holding and throwing pot shots. Towards the end of the 1st round, Martirosyan landed several left and right hands that gave him the round. There wasn’t much action due to Martirosyan’s movement and holding.
In the 2nd round, Golovkin came out firing hard jabs from the outside and throwing long right hands and left hooks. Golovkin landed a big uppercut that caught Martirosyan that hurt him and caused him to back up and slip to the canvas. The referee Jack Reiss ruled that it was a slip, but it was clear that Martirosyan had been hurt by the shot.
Martirosyan was trying to hold to clear his head but Golovkin spun him off. When the two fighters came in close, Martirosyan hit Golovkin with a right uppercut to the head that backed him off. Moments later, Golovkin attempted an uppercut of his own that had knockout written all over it, but it just barely missed. Had that punch landed, Martirosyan would have been counting stars.
Martirosyan made a mistake at this point in the fight by not moving as much. He seemed to forget his movement and stood in front of GGG a little too long. That’s when Golovkin fired a big left hook to the head that rocked Martirosyan, causing him to back up. He was hurt. Martirosyan fired back a right hand that GGG walked through. Golovkin then fired a big right hand that snapped Martirosyan’s head back.
Golovkin then landed a jab followed by a right hand and then a left-right combination that put Martirosyan down. While Martirosyan was falling, Golovkin hit him with a right hand for good measure. That last shot knocked Martirosyan senseless.
The win for Golovkin ties him with Bernard Hopkins at 20 for the most successful title defenses for a middleweight. The stoppage was Golovkin’s first knockout since his 5th round TKO of Kell Brook in September 2016.
Golovkin’s victory tonight sent a strong message to Saul Canelo Alvarez for what he has in store for him when/if he faces GGG in September in a rematch. Golovkin was hoping Canelo would face him tonight, but he tested positive for the performance enhancing substance clenbuterol and he subsequently was suspended by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
