Gennady Golovkin Says Floyd Mayweather Isn't Finished, Wants to Fight American
WBA and IBO middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin has backed Floyd Mayweather to return to boxing, putting himself forward as a potential opponent for the American should he get back in the ring.
Mayweather has claimed his previous fight against Andre Berto was his final outing in the sport, but after such an underwhelming finale, there are many who expect him to make a return in an attempt to take his career record to 50-0. Golovkin agrees with that assessment.
“Floyd, he’s not finished,” GGG told some reporters prior to a press conference on Wednesday, per Keith Idec of BoxingScene.com. “He’s not finished. He’s a good businessman. He’s a very smart guy. He has [a] plan [for his] future.”
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When asked whether he would like to go up against Money, Golovkin was unashamedly keen: “I hope. This is boxing—a very short sport life. Why not? This is a big chance for us.”
Golovkin has a big challenge to come this weekend, when he faces Canadian puncher David Lemieux in New York. The Kazakh heads into the bout with an immaculate record of 33 wins from 33 fights, 30 of which came inside the scheduled distance.
As we can see here, GGG is one of the biggest punchers in the sport at the moment:
Lemieux, like Golovkin, is a thunderous hitter and someone who is set to provide the Kazakh with his biggest test to date. A win for Golovkin would see him unify the middleweight division, as the Canadian’s IBF belt is the only one he currently does not own. Naturally, if he does achieve the feat, there will be plenty looking at what other challenges he can potentially pursue.
Still, plenty has to align before Mayweather-Golovkin becomes anything more than a fantasy fight. Indeed, according to Golden Boy promoter Oscar de la Hoya, we should be excited about a new era of boxing without Mayweather, of which the Kazakh is set to be a critical part:
Still, should Floyd return, GGG would be an intriguing opponent. Naturally, there is a big issue when it comes to weight classes, as Golovkin is the much bigger man. However, as reported by Idec, the middleweight has previously detailed plans to shred down to 154 pounds should the chance to go up against Mayweather surface.
However, as we can see here courtesy of Floyd’s official Twitter feed, there seems to be little indication that he wants to return to the sport any time soon. *warning, expletive language used*:
Should Golovkin overcome Lemieux, then there will be a clamour for him to fight Mayweather. But even if Floyd does come back looking to surpass Rocky Marciano’s 49-0 career record, he’ll most likely avoid going up against a brute of a puncher and a fighter who has a much bulkier somatotype.
Mayweather seems content in his retirement at the moment, with a bank balance bolstered and opponents conquered. But for all his bravado, Floyd is ferociously competitive, and as the weeks tick by away from the ring, the chance of another payday will become increasingly tantalising.
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