Gennadiy Golovkin failed to capture the Undisputed Super Middleweight belts against Canelo Alvarez on September 17 in Las Vegas. His second-ever career defeat came via unanimous decision. The 40-year-old, however, is still a champion in the Middleweight category, boasting the IBF, WBO, and WBA titles. Despite losing against Canelo, Gennadiy Golovkin snubbed the possibility of his retirement and said that he will return.
However, boxing legend Roberto Duran doesn't want to see that happen. ‘Hands of Stone’ recently shed light on his views on Canelo vs. GGG 3 and advised Golovkin to hang up his gloves. In a chat with Fight HUB TV, Duran said:
“I thought Canelo was going to apply more pressure to knock him out...[Golovkin] didn’t apply a lot of pressure. Retire now. He lost against Canelo. Golovin is not the same as before. I saw him lazy. I saw him washed. His mind didn’t help him. He didn’t think well. In boxing, you have to think a lot.”
Watch the full interview below:
71-year-old Duran is one of the most prolific boxers to have ever stepped into the ring. In a career spanning over thirty years, the Panama native has amassed a professional record of 103 wins and 16 losses. Those figures seem almost unachievable today and Duran understands that pretty well.
He was once asked to predict the outcome of a fantasy fight between himself and the undefeated Floyd Mayweather. Duran comfortably picked himself and justified why he could have cracked ‘Money’ in a pro-boxing affair. He said:
“Me more experienced, more intelligent boxer. I was too intelligent and I would know when Mayweather would be good or would be bad. The defense that Mayweather used, he learned it from me. There is nothing that I could have learned from Mayweather. On the contrary, Mayweather would learn from me.”
Meanwhile, Duran’s recent statements about Gennadiy Golovkin might be concerning for GGG fans. The Kazakh star's latest performance looked, at best, a brave effort in a losing struggle.
Can Gennadiy Golovkin weather the Middleweight storm?
Gennadiy Golovkin is expected to come down to 160 lbs, but the journey won't be easy. WBO and WBC champions- Demetrius Andrade and Jermall Charlo have wanted to fight ‘GGG’ on several occasions. Both are undefeated and have been legitimate contenders for quite some time.
Although Gennadiy Golovkin is a fantastic pugilist, it’s doubtful whether he can hang with a youthful contenders' pool.
Ryota Murata was coming off a two-year plus layoff when Golovkin knocked the WBA Middleweight belt out of him. ‘Hitman’ Charlo and ‘Boo Booo’ Andrade will seemingly be way tougher opponents than Murata. So, it will be interesting to see whether ‘GGG’ puts his lion heart on display and fights these hungry challengers.