By Dan Ambrose: Jermall Charlo says he feels he’s being “overlooked” at 160, and he wants to follow in his twin brother’s footsteps by becoming undisputed at middleweight.
‘The big Charlo,’ as some boxing fans refer to Jermall, failed to take the initiative to battle WBO middleweight champion Demetrius Andrade when he had the chance to fight him.
It’s no secret that Jermell Charlo’s career has significantly outshined Jermall’s, and the reason for that is he’s been willing to take more significant risks. It’s not necessarily that Jermall (32-0, 22 KOs) lacks his brother’s talent.
At 32, Jermall might not have enough time to become the undisputed champion at 160, and it’s not worth it. IBF/WBA middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin will likely retire after he fights Canelo Alvarez in their trilogy match on September 17th unless he beats him.
“I’m getting overlooked right now in the division. It’s not me, y’all. I’m the 160-pound division,” said Jermall Charlo to Brian Custer’s podcast. “I’m the 160-lb champion.
Golovkin isn’t going to waste his time fighting a guy that doesn’t have much of a fan base like Jermall and competes on a different network than he does on Showtime.
“Where are all the other belts at? I want all the belts in the division like my brother [Jermell Charlo]. I want to be able to unify and become one of the best middleweights in history,” said Jermall.
Suppose Jermall was ambitious like his twin brother Jermell. In that case, he’d quit the 160-lb division pronto and move up to 160, where he could pressure undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo to fight him.
For Jermall to put pressure on Canelo, he must beat a top name like David Benavidez or David Morrell Jr.
Unfortunately, the only guy that Jermall is interested in fighting if he moves up to 168 is Canelo, and that’s not going to happen because the Mexican star is telling him to earn the fight by facing Benavidez, which he has no interest in doing.
Jermall expects a Canelo fight to plop down in his lap, brought to him by the forces of gravity.
In other words, Jermall doesn’t want to get off his backside and earn the fight with Canelo by beating Benavidez or Morrell Jr.
He wants the fight to be given to him passively based on his wins against little-known opposition at 160. One great example of Jermall fighting obscure opposition was his recently scheduled June 18th fight against Maciej Sulecki.
If Jermall wants the Canelo contest or to become undisputed at 160, what is he doing fighting guys like Sulecki, Juan Macias Montiel, and Dennis Hogan?
It’s pretty clear that Jermall is wasting his time, fighting once a year against weak opposition, and he’s NEVER going to become the undisputed champion at 160 at this rate.
