Canelo Alvarez asks: Where is Golovkin? He’s done nothing

By Boxing News - 10/14/2021 - Comments

By Sean Jones: Canelo Alvarez is leaving a sliver of hope for Gennadiy Golovkin for a trilogy match with the Kazah star this week by saying he’s “ready for everything.”

Despite Canelo having captured three world titles since his victory over Golovkin three years ago in 2018, boxing fans are still interested in seeing him face him again.

They want to see Canelo fight Golovkin far more than they do in watching him pursue his superficial goal of becoming the undisputed super middleweight champion.

It’s great that Canelo is nearing his goal of becoming the undisputed champion at 168, but the champions that he’s beaten – Rocky Fielding, Callum Smith, and Billy Joe Saunders – lacked the popularity to create the huge interest that the Mexican star generated for either of his two fights with Golovkin.

Canelo has ignored what fans want

What’s gone over Canelo’s head is that boxing fans aren’t excited at seeing him beat paper champions Fielding, Smith, and Saunders. They’d rather have seen him battle an exciting fighter like Golovkin than watching him beat no-name belt-holders, who should never been champions in the first place.

Image: Canelo Alvarez asks: Where is Golovkin? He's done nothing

In the last three years, Canelo has had a tin ear for who the boxing public wants to see him fight. Instead of listening to the fans and giving GGG a trilogy match, Canelo has ignored them and chosen the path of least resistance by fighting the British champions Fielding, Callum, and Saunders.

In hindsight, Canelo wasted his time and used up three years of his life chasing an empty goal. Canelo made money, though, but he failed to earn the respect that he would have if he’d listened to the fans and fought Golovkin.

You can argue that Canelo would have gained far more in the last three years if he’d fought Golovkin three times than he has in defeating the weak and badly flawed 168-lb champions

Alvarez accomplishing more than Golovkin

“I am ready for everything, I am ready to make the best fights,” stressed Canelo. “You (the media) hang on to that (trilogy with Golovkin). I’m doing more important things than him,” said Canelo to ESPN Deportes on him doing more than Golovkin with his career. Where is he? What has he done after he fought me? Nothing.”

“I am doing other important things in my career, beating champions, undefeated,” said Canelo.

Yeah, Canelo has been busier than GGG, winning belts against mediocre champions at 168, but he hasn’t done anything to attract lot of interest in his fights.

The fans weren’t excited at seeing Canelo fight Billy Joe Saunders, Callum Smith, Rocky Fielding, Avni Yildirim, Sergey Kovalev, or Danny Jacobs.

Those were safe payday fights for Canelo. They were a foxhole for Canelo to hide in to keep him from risking his backside against David Benavidez, who would have likely have torn him apart by now.

Those fights were a refuge to protect Canelo from the harsh reality that awaits him if he were to show true courage and give the fans what they really want by fighting Benavidez, Golovkin, Beterbiev, Demetrius Andrade, Bivol, and Joe Smith Jr.

Golovkin and Canelo have been both disappointing since their rematch in 2018. While Canelo has been beating flawed fighters one after another, Golovkin has underachieved to the extreme, defeating these easy marks:

  • Steve Rolls
  • Kamil Szeremeta
  • Sergiy Derevyanchenko

You got to feel a little bit sorry for DAZN, as they signed Golovkin to a contract obviously thinking they were going to get great fights from him. Instead, they’ve seen him take the equivalent of three tune-ups.

Golovkin should have gone in the direction of Jermall Charlo, Demetrius Andrade, David Benavidez, or Chris Eubank Jr. Any of those opponents would have been infinitely better than the guys that Golovkin did fight.

Canelo not giving fans the fights they want

For his part, Canelo has fought these less than stellar fighters since his controversial win over Golovkin in 2018:

  • Sergey Kovalev – shot
  • Daniel Jacobs – already beaten by GGG
  • Avni Yildirim – what was Canelo thinking?
  • Billy Joe Saunders – paper champ
  • Callum Smith – paper champ
  • Rocky Fielding – paper champ

Once Canelo beats IBF 168-lb champion Caleb Plant on November 6th, you can add him to the list of paper champs that he’s beaten in the last three years.

Image: Canelo Alvarez asks: Where is Golovkin? He's done nothing

What a pure waste of time for Canelo, and he has nothing to show for the last three years of his career. Canelo should have fought these guys if he wanted to impress boxing fans in a real way:

  • Gennadiy Golovkin
  • Artur Beterbiev
  • Jermall Charlo
  • Dmitry Bivol
  • David Benavidez
  • Joe Smith Jor
  • David Morrell Jr
  • Carlos Gongora
  • Demetrius Andrade

Canelo reacts to Fury’s win over Wilder

“A very good fight. People love it when fighters get knocked down repeatedly,” said Canelo on WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury’s 11th round knockout win over Deontay Wilder last Saturday night in their trilogy fight in Las Vegas.

“(Deontay Wilder) got tired, he didn’t know how to take off blows on the ropes. I think he lacked a lot of technique and conditioning. He just wanted a single hit and that’s NOT the way fights are won.

“Fury is a great fighter, but in the end, Wilder himself lost because he lacked the conditioning,” said Canelo.

Deontay Wilder did look horribly prepared conditioning-wise for the Tyson Fury trilogy last weekend.

It makes you wonder what precisely was Wilder’s new coach Malik Scott doing during the training camp? Was it Wilder calling all the shots when it came to what he was doing in camp?