Pressure Is on Canelo and Golovkin to Make Fans Care About Boxing's Next Era

The two best, most popular fighters in boxing compete in the same weight class. Fans, of course, are clamoring to see them do battle.

Instead, Gennady "GGG" Golovkin and Saul "Canelo" Alvarez have merely circled, occasionally sniffing each other and thinking about the wars to come. They are playing the alphabet-soup game, with their dueling world titles representing different sanctioning bodies, each with its own list of mandatory challengers and Byzantine bylaws.

No one, yet, has moved to establish dominance.

If this sounds at all familiar, it's because this same story dominated boxing for six long years until Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. finally consummated their relationship. Despite occupying the same weight range and fighting for the same television network for much of that time, the two couldn't seem to find their way to the same ring.

By the time the fight finally happened, the two best boxers in the world were mere shadows of what they'd once been in their primes. This was a battle between dueling brands, not fighters with hunger in their bellies and fire in their fists. The dream match between the most aggressive fighter of his generation and the defensive master who might prove the matador to Pacquiao's bull never transpired.  

USA Today's Mike Foss blamed the matchmaking delay for the lethargic performance in the ring:

"

Had this fight happened six years ago, perhaps the outcome would have been different. At the very least, it would have been more bearable to watch. A youthful Pacquiao might have turned the fight on its head with his devastating hand speed and forced Mayweather to adjust – or maybe even knock him down.

But this wasn’t six years ago, it was Saturday, and Pacquiao looked old, tired, and simply happy to be there. It wasn’t the fight of the century. It was a retirement plan.

"

Mayweather had become a defensive fighter who rarely remembered that doing damage was part of the game. Pacquiao had slipped to the point that he'd fallen short twice in the time it took for dreams to become reality. The "Fight of the Century" ended up being a financial bonanza and an athletic bust.

Golovkin and Canelo aren't yet the box-office attractions their predecessors were. Nor are they the kind of historic craftsman Mayweather became, as the next in a long line of stylistic geniuses dating back a century. And, no, neither man has the rags-to-riches story that made Pacquiao a beloved figure around the world. 

But, when they finally do square off, there's a much better chance a fight breaks out. Mayweather and Pacquiao were oil and water. Canelo and GGG are oil and fire. When (or if) they meet, an explosion is imminent.

It's been barely five months since Alvarez won the WBC and lineal middleweight championship from Miguel Cotto. It's a bit early to panic or for visions of Mayweather and Pacquiao to dance in our heads. 

But some disturbing signs should give fans pause. Promoters and fighters are already jawing back and forth, and Canelo is suggesting the fight should be at a catchweight of 155 pounds instead of the middleweight limit of 160. 

In the next month, both Canelo and GGG will defend their championships, against Amir Khan and Dominic Wade, respectively. Their next fight, at least if GGG and the WBC have their way, will be against each other. If that doesn't happen, there's every reason to believe another waiting game could be in store.

Fighter	Golovkin	Canelo
Height	5' 10 1/2"	5'9"
Reach	70"	70 1/2"
Age	34	25
Record	34-0 (31 KO)	46-1-1 (32 KO)
Rounds Fought	154	326

Both men can learn a lot from Mayweather and Pacquiao's example. Despite being the top fighters of their generation, the two left much of the boxing public with a bitter aftertaste as they made what should have been tearful farewells.

Much of the good work they did earlier in their careers has been forgotten in the wake of their disappointing final act. They tried to save the best for last. In an unforgiving sport like boxing, that's simply impossible. A fighter doesn't make his name in the waning days of his career, when his focus is on building his bank account rather than his legacy. 

When we think of Mike Tyson, it's of the fearsome monster of his youth. Ray Leonard built his enduring legend in his prime when he took to the ring with the best of the best. That he lost the final two bouts of his career is barely an afterthought. 

Canelo and Golovkin are at their best right now—and right now is the time for them to prove who's the better man in the ring. Pulling a Pacquiao, so soon after he and Mayweather blew their own opportunity to make boxing history, would be devastating.

For a sport that is still trying to find its feet after such an epic failure, it could even be fatal.

Jonathan Snowden covers combat sports for Bleacher Report.