Gennady Golovkin and Canelo Alvarez shared the ring on several occasions in one of the sport’s most iconic trilogies.
Their first encounter took place eight years ago and would end in a split decision draw after a closely fought battle, although many fans and analysts thought ‘GGG’ done more than enough to walk away with the victory.
Their rematch took place exactly one year later, and after another competitive twelve rounds in Las Vegas it was Alvarez who was declared the winner via majority decision to capture the WBC and WBA middleweight titles, handing Golovkin the first defeat of his career.
The third and final battle between Canelo and ‘GGG’ did not take place until September of 2022, in what would be the Mexican superstar’s maiden defence of his undisputed super-middleweight championship which he won the year before.
Canelo defeated Golovkin via unanimous decision in what was a comprehensive victory for the Mexican, handing ‘GGG’ the second defeat of his career to effectively send him into retirement, although the 43-year-old is yet to officially announce this.
In a feature with DAZN Boxing, Golovkin wasn’t impressed with the punching power of Canelo, saying it ‘felt like a slap’ and that he didn’t hit hard.
“I remember that punch. Well, I let it get through. You know it wasn’t, I don’t know what to call it, it wasn’t hard. It felt kind of like a slap I guess. A slap or a sliding punch. Well, it didn’t do too much.”
Canelo is just several months away from locking horns with Terence Crawford in what has been regarded as the biggest fight in boxing.
It was confirmed this week that the pound-for-pound stars will clash at the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on Saturday September 13, with Canelo set to defend his undisputed super-middleweight championship against the unbeaten 37-year-old from Omaha.