Golovkin vs. Monroe

By Jim Dower: IBO/WBA middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin (33-0, 30 KOs) knocked challenger Willie Monroe Jr. (19-2, 6 KOs) out in the 6th round on Saturday night after Monroe quit after a knockdown at the on Saturday night at The Forum in Inglewood, California. This victory for Golovkin gives him his 20th consecutive knockout. Monroe had said there was no way he was going to get knocked out in this fight, but unfortunately he couldn’t back up his words.

Golovkin knocked Monroe down three times in the fight. He dropped Monroe twice in the 2nd round and once in the 6th. Monroe barely made it up to beat the count in the 6th round. However, when asked by referee Jack Reiss if he wanted to continue, Monroe said “I’m done.” The ending was kind of anti-climatic because Monroe should have at least tried to continue fighting, but it didn’t look like he had the heart to take another big left hook from Golovkin after eating some tremendous lefts in the 6th.

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By Dan Ambrose: We recently saw the “Fight of the Century” between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao with both fighters getting well over $100 million each. On the flipside, tonight we’ll be seeing two fighters getting much less than that in IBO/WBA middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin (32-0, 29 KOs) in his fight against challenger Willie Monroe Jr. (19-1, 6 KOs) at The Forum in Inglewood, California.

Despite being seen as the best fighter in the 160 pound division, Golovkin will be getting just $1.5 million for his 12 round fight. Monroe, 28, will be getting far less at $100,000.

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By Jim Dower: 28-year-old challenger Willie Monroe Jr. (19-1, 6 KOs) expects to open a lot of eyes with the way that he performs tonight against IBO/WBA middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin (32-0, 29 KOs) tonight in their fight on HBO.

Monroe feels that he’s going to surprise boxing fans with the way that he’s able to nail Golovkin with shots. The Kazakhstan fighter usually doesn’t get hit too often in his fights due to his sound defense, and his ability to land crushing counter shots.

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By Dan Ambrose: A lot of fans don’t quite understand why IBO/WBA middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin (32-0, 29 KOs) is facing #2 WBA Willie Monroe (19-1, 6 KOs) tonight in their fight on HBO at the Forum in Inglewood, California. It’s an unusual choice of an opponent for Golovkin because it’s an optional defense for him, and he could fight almost anyone with a more entertaining fighting style.

Monroe fights in a style that is similar to Floyd Mayweather Jr., only he doesn’t have Mayweather’s hand speed, pinpoint accuracy and excellent defense. But Golovkin says the reason why he wants to fight the southpaw Monroe is because he wants to prove that he can beat his style.

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By Dan Ambrose: WBA middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin (32-0, 29 KOs) came in one pound under the limit today in weighing in at 159 pounds during his official weigh-in on Friday for his fight tomorrow night at the Forum in Inglewood, California.

Golovkin’s opponent for Saturday, Willie Monroe Jr. (19-1, 6 KOs), weighed in right at the middleweight limit at 160 pounds.

The 5’10 1/2” Golovkin looked like the taller fighter of the two compared to the 5’10” Monroe. However, Monroe looked bigger with his upper body than Golovkin. Whether Monroe’s bigger size will translate to more power than what we’ve seen from him in the past is unclear.

Monroe is a good fighter, as he showed in winning ESPN’s 2014 Boxcino tournament, but he’s out of his class here. Monroe is more of a fringe level fighter with an inflated ranking rather than a guy that is ranked #2 by the WBA.

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