Boxing News 2015: Gennady Golovkin to Face David Lemieux in October in New York?
The World Boxing Association and International Boxing Organization middleweight king Gennady "GGG" Golovkin could face the International Boxing Federation middleweight champion David Lemiex in October in New York.
The two fighter's promoters, K2 Promotions and Golden Boy Promotions, are said to be ironing out details for the Golovkin vs. Lemieux bout, reported Boxing Scene.
The outlet's sources indicated that the plans are nearing completion and that the two boxers will collide October 17 at the Madison Square Garden.
Although nothing has been confirmed by the two parties, an earlier report by Boxing Scene stated that there's already a scheduled event for K2 Promotions in New York on that date. Triple G's promoter, Tom Loeffler, has also stated that GGG's focus is on "unifying the middleweight belts."
This move is in line with the Kazakh warrior's goal of capturing the World Boxing council middleweight title from whoever wins the Miguel Cotto vs. Saul "Canelo" Alvarez November bout. Being WBC's mandatory challenger, he must be prepared for the fight and a bout with Lemieux is a perfect match for him.
First, it is in the same weight division. This is more logical than trying to set up matches against heavier opponents like Andre Ward, then go back again by losing high muscle weight.
Second, aside from being a great preparation for his WBC belt goal, a match with Lemieux could give Golovkin another honor, which is the IBF title.
Golden Boy Promotions Executive's statements
Lemieux's promoter, Golden Boy executive Eric Gomez, was quick to air his statements about his fighter's next match, maintaining that nothing is definite yet.
"We have been approached by Tom Loeffler, but we haven't decided. The fight excites me, and all of us, because I came at it from a fan perspective. We're meeting later this week, a conference call, to go over all the options," Gomez told RingTV.
Boxing News 24 commented that it would be an honor for Lemieux to clash with the undefeated Kazakh. However, it may also be a double-edged sword as Triple G's knockout rating is 91 percent - he served 30 of his 33 opponents a humbling TKO loss.
Possible hurdle to unification goal
The fear of being crushed by GGG's punishing hands is also going through young boxer Billy Joe Saunders' mind. He will challenge the current World Boxing Organization middleweight champion, Andy Lee, on September 19.
"I would never go into a fight thinking I could lose. Ever - but I don't care what money it was, I just wouldn't do it [fight GGG]," said Saunders to IFLTV, as quoted by Boxing News 24.
If Saunders wins over Lee, GGG's camp may need to exert more effort to convince the 25-year-old to fight Golovkin, then, added the site.
Fighters GGG may not face this year
If the Lemieux bout does not materialize, boxing fans of Erislandy Lara (21-2-2, 12KOs) and former champion Sergio Mora (28-3-2, 9KOs) should not expect the boxers to clash with Golovkin this fall, too. Abel Sanchez told Boxing Scene that these boxers do not deserve a fight against his prized fighter.
Meanwhile, veteran boxer Bernard Hopkins, who has challenged GGG to a fight, may not be seen on the ring with him, either, as he may be retiring soon, World Boxing News reported, citing sources close to the 50-year-old fighter.
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