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Gennady Golovkin talks Canelo Alvarez rematch at UFC 226

By Jeremy Herriges

LOS ANGELES, CA - FEBRUARY 27: Chivas Regal and fans of the Chivas Fight Club join Gennady "GGG" Golovkin as he discusses his anticipated rematch at LA LIVE on February 27, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Rich Polk/Getty Images for Chivas Regal)
LOS ANGELES, CA - FEBRUARY 27: Chivas Regal and fans of the Chivas Fight Club join Gennady "GGG" Golovkin as he discusses his anticipated rematch at LA LIVE on February 27, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Rich Polk/Getty Images for Chivas Regal) /
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Gennady Golovkin is the WBC and WBA middleweight boxing champion. He visited the octagon at UFC 226 and talked about his rematch with Canelo Alvarez.

Middleweight boxing champion Gennady Golovkin (38-0-1, 34 KOs) has a highly anticipated rematch with Canelo Alvarez (49-1-2, 34 KOs) on Sept. 15. While actively training, Golovkin is finding time to enjoy life as he attended UFC 226. Golovkin took some time to talk about his upcoming bout, and FanSided was there to catch his comments.

The buildup to the Golovkin/Alvarez fight has been contentious. Last week Golovkin and Alvarez remotely hosted a media conference call live on Facebook. Alvarez said he had no respect for Golovkin and his team. It was implied that Alvarez didn’t want to host conferences with Golovkin and his team due to his disdain for them.

Golovkin attended UFC 226 to take in the main event between Stipe Miocic and Daniel Cormier but found time to talk about Alvarez and why the rematch is very different from their first bout.

“I had a good experience from the first fight,” said Golovkin. “Right now, [I] just want to a little bit [sic] change my performance. I know what I need for my second fight. Right now, we have a different situation. Different emotions, different business deal, just everything.”

Golovkin went on to say that he expects “no respect” from Alvarez. Alvarez said as much in their media call. He added that they have “different mentalities.”

Their first fight was an evenly matched battle between two champions, but they showed mutual deference towards each other. That was nearly a year ago and a lot has changed. The negotiations for their rematch were antagonistic. It didn’t help that when Alvarez was suspended for testing positive for Clenbuterol, Golovkin’s team dismissed his tainted meat defense and implied that he’s just a cheater.

While he’s excited about the fight, Golovkin knows that Alvarez is a game opponent. “Right now it’s a very interesting and very dangerous situation for us,” said Golovkin.

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The first fight was a draw. Alvarez was the counterpuncher and Golovkin was the aggressor. It will be interesting to see if the bad blood will translate into a more ferocious, brawling Alvarez. We’ll find out on Sept. 15.

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