Lampley: The general public says Golovkin beat Canelo in both fights

By Boxing News - 09/21/2018 - Comments

Image: Lampley: The general public says Golovkin beat Canelo in both fights

By Jeff Aranow: Jim Lampley of HBO says Saul Canelo Alvarez may have won last Saturday’s fight as far as the judges go, but the “general public” saw Gennady Golovkin as the real winner in that fight. Golovkin is another Muhammad Ali, says Lampley and viewed as having twice been martyred in fights against Alvarez in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Rather than Golovkin’s popularity being hurt from having failed to get wins in his 2 fights against Alvarez, he’s grown in popularity and become the “people’s champion.” The fans love Golovkin, and many of them now view Canelo was scorn for the way he judges have saved him from losses.

You can argue that it would have been better for Canelo if the judges had scored both fights in favor of Golovkin, because the general public wouldn’t see him as a pampered fighter who has been given preferential treatment by the Nevada judges. The boxing fans would be clapping Canelo on the back and giving him the old ‘that a boy’ for having given Golovkin good fights in his two matches against him. If only the judges had scored the two Canelo-Golovkin fights the way that the fans saw them, Alvarez would be held in a much better standing than he is now.

It’s got to be a real disappointment for Golden Boy Promotions for the general public to see Canelo as once again receiving a decision that he failed to deserve. The Nevada judges scored it for Canelo 114-114, 115-113 and 115-113. However, large percentage of the media thought Canelo lost the fight. The casual and hardcore boxing fans appear to be in agreement that GGG was the real winner last Saturday. What this means is the Nevada judges that worked the fight saw something that the majority of the world didn’t. Whether it was bias on the part of the Nevada judges or simply a case of them truly believing that Canelo was the better fighter is unknown. What is clear is a third fight is needed between Canelo and GGG to have a true winner picked because the judges have failed to pick a winner in the two fights that the boxing world could agree on in a unified opinion.

”By an overwhelming majority, fans and general media have decided Gennady Golovkin won both fights,” Lampley said in his review of the Canelo vs. GGG 2 fight outcome. ”They don’t need to confuse themselves with Compubox numbers and round by round scoring and technical analysis…they [the boxing public] have spoken loudly again. They like the way Triple G competes. They love the passion his face projects. They are enthralled with his heart.”

Simply put, Lampley expertly points out the obvious about the fans: They love Golovkin’s fighting style and heart, and they know a winner when they see one. Canelo had a chance to win the fight last Saturday night, but he ran out of gas in the second half of the bout and wound up getting buzzed in the 10th and 11th rounds. The crucial 12th round, which 2 of the 3 Nevada State Athletic Commission assigned judges gave to Canelo, was seen overwhelmingly by the general public as a Golovkin round. Again, the boxing public invalidated the Nevada judges. Just why Golden Boy chose to bring back the Canelo-Golovkin 2 fight to Las Vegas is the real question. Some fans think Golden Boy brought the fight back to Las Vegas and the same venue as last time to ensure a win for Canelo, because he’s pretty important to the city. It’s possible that Golden Boy didn’t realize that the fans would invalidate another decision by the three Nevada judges picked out to work the fight if they scored a second fight in a controversial way that ran opposite to how they saw he fight playing out.

“Now Triple G is something of a latter day Ali, a global superstar seen as having been twice martyred by the hidebound and impenetrable processes of a sport that can’t get out of its own way,” Lampley said.

You can argue that it’s difficult for judges to score fights in ways that seem logical when they’re picked a state commission from the state where the fight is taking place. If the judges were brought in from different places in the world and had nothing to gain from a fight going to a particular fighter, then the scoring of fights might be scored better.

“Canelo’s victory, however satisfying at first, will ultimately do little to increase the size or passion of his audience, built in from the start as the result of his favorable cultural perch, as the face of Mexican boxing,” Lampley said about Canelo’s popularity not increasing

Lampley hits on the head in remarking that Canelo’s win over GGG will do very little to make him a bigger star in boxing. Without common sense judging, Canelo can’t increase his popularity with the public. The fans have already now seen Canelo dodge 4 losses during his career due to questionable scoring in his two fights against Golovkin, Austin Trout and Erislandy Lara. Some fans even believe that Canelo should have lost to Miguel Cotto. Canelo is perceived as a fighter that cannot be beaten by decision, thanks to the judging. Being seen as a fighter that is given controversial decision each time you face a good opponent isn’t a good thing because it makes boxing fans not trust you.

”The two decisions which have frustrated Gennady Golovkin have dramatically multiplied the size of Triple G nation, which is now a global cult. You don’t have to win to be the winner. That’s boxing. That’s life,”

It’s strange how controversial decisions sometimes can multiply the losing fighter’s fan base. Instead of fans drifting away from the losing fighter to become fans of the winner, the public at last circles their wagons around the loser and become more embedded as that fighter’s fans. It could ultimately help Golden Boy and Canelo as well, as the fans will still be interested in a third Golovkin fight despite the controversial outcomes of the first two fights. Of course, it’s likely going to require that the venue for the third fight changes from Las Vegas to a different city like New York. I think it’s safe to say to say that the public is jaded about seeing Golovkin and Canelo fight in Las Vegas ever again. Two controversial decisions one too many for one city. It’s time for new blood if/when Canelo and Golovkin fight for a third time. Golden Boy can’t keep taking the fights with Golovkin to Las Vegas, because there are too many fans that see that place as a city where Golovkin can’t be given a fair decision. If Canelo can prove that he can beat Golovkin in New York City or Atlantic City, New Jersey, it would help give the perception that Golden Boy are open minded about fighting in a different location. As long as the scoring for the third fight makes sense to the fans, having it someplace else outside of Nevada would be a good thing. Canelo and Golovkin could get a fresh start with a different location, and the fans will likely welcome that move with open arms.

”I didn’t see the fight the same as the judges,” former WBC welterweight champion Victor Ortiz said to Fighthype. ”I had my own opinion. It was one hell of a fight. I didn’t agree with the outcome. I thought GGG pulled it off.”

Ortiz is just one of many people that feel that GGG was he real winner from last Saturday. It’s too bad that the fans don’t agree with the decision from the fight. There needs to be better judges obviously so that the fans don’t lose interest in boxing because of the way that the judges seem to score fights that run contrary to how the public views the fights.