By Dan Ambrose: Oscar De La Hoya wants Gennadiy Golovkin to walk the plank by taking on the younger 26-year-old Jaime Munguia in his next fight.
De La Hoya feels that Munguia (40-0, 32 KOs) fighting Golovkin would be a win-win for the sport, especially if he were to defeat the 40-year-old, who is coming off a loss to Canelo Alvarez last month on September 17th.
Oscar says that if Golovkin were to win, he would be right back on top of the sport amongst the elites, and that’s kind of hard to believe because his recent performances suggest otherwise.
Even if Golovkin could find the fountain of youth to defeat Munguia, he will not defeat fighters like Jermall Charlo, Demetrius Andrade, Chris Eubank Jr, or Zhanibek Alimkhanuly. Golovkin can’t pull the trigger any longer on his shots.
“I think Golovkin since a lot of Mexicans love him and has a huge fan base support base with the Mexicans and Kazahstan, and he’s a global fighter,” said Oscar De La Hoya to Fight Hub TV. “I think a fight against Jaime Munguia would be perfect for both guys because it would be action.
“Golovkin beating Jaime Munguia would get him back on top, and amongst the diehard boxing fans, he would be on top of the world again.
“Imagine if Jaime Munguia beats or knocks out Golovkin, then it can be a win-win for boxing, and it’s a great fight for the sport.
De La Hoya bored by Canelo-Golovkin III
“It was boring; it was slow,” said De La Hoya about Canelo’s trilogy match against 40-year-old Gennadiy Golovkin last month on September 17th.
“I actually expected Canelo to knock him out. I went out of my way to say Canelo’s going to knock him out because that’s exactly how I felt, and that’s exactly what he should have done.
“I was surprised GGG came out in the last rounds and tried to press the action and try to finish the fight strong. But that’s why I’ve been studying this fight left and right because I love boxing. I’m a historian of boxing.
“The fact that Canelo only threw one punch at a time was pretty odd to me. Maybe he was distracted, or maybe he was not trained properly. Maybe he didn’t have the right game plan. I’m not sure.
“But if Canelo throws 3, 4, and 5-punch combinations and presses the action and has the conditioning, he knocks out GGG, hands down. He hasn’t been throwing combinations, so maybe there’s been something going on personally. Who knows?
“I remember as a fighter, I was the hardest worker in town, just like Canelo is. But if you’re distracted, if you have issues, if something is going on personally. Who knows? That can be a burden on you, that can be a huge distraction and the pressure of being the face of boxing. It’s a lot.
“I’m blessed, and I’m surprised I lasted this long on top of the game being the face for so many years. I can see everything from the outside now. It’s a lot of pressure.
“That’s why I said that Canelo is going to knock him out because Golovkin isn’t a 40-year-old like when [Bernard] Hopkins was 40 years old,” said De La Hoya when asked if it was expected Canelo would knock out Golovkin because he was so old.
“He’s an old 40. Bernard Hopkins was a young 40. GGG has been in wars, and his amateur resume is extensive. It’s a lot of time in the ring. It’s a lot of punishment, and it’s a lot of training and wear & tear. Father time catches up to you, and that’s it.
“If Canelo had taken advantage of that, he would have knocked him out. He [Golovkin] has a great chin, but nobody can survive a perfectly placed body shot. A lot of great champions have gone down, including myself.
“I would never be one to say, ‘Go retire.’ I would never say that to anybody because it’s a personal decision that you have to make as a fighter yourself,” said De La Hoya when asked if Golovkin should retire.
