Golovkin on Canelo fight: This is about being the champion of the world

BIG BEAR, CALIF. (July 12, 2017) — Boxing’s No. 1 pound for pound superhero GENNADY “GGG” GOLOVKIN is back at The Summit Gym, head trainer Abel Sanchez’s high altitude training complex in Big Bear, Calif., preparing for the biggest challenge to his world championship crown — Canelo Alvarez! Golovkin, the 2017 ESPY Award Best Fighter nominee (his third consecutive nomination), came into training fit and fired up as he gears up for his long-awaited Las Vegas debut.

“Abel has new ideas for this fight – exciting ideas — and I need to be my best to perform in the ring,” said Golovkin. “I don’t care about pound for pound. This is real. This is about being the champion of the world.”

“I was very happy with the first week Gennady spent in camp for basic conditioning,” said Sanchez. “The most difficult thing to do with Gennady is to hold him back. Starting slowly is just not in his vocabulary. Gennady has wanted this fight for so long. I can already tell he is going to pull out all stops in this training camp to be at his best on September 16. This is war.”

Golovkin (37-0, 33 KOs), a native of Karaganda, Kazakhstan who now resides in Los Angeles, has reigned as a world middleweight champion since 2010. Throughout his seven-year championship tenure he has successfully defended his crown 18 times while unifying the WBC, WBA, IBF and IBO titles. Only one of those fights went the distance. He defends his titles against lineal and RING Magazine Middleweight World Champion and Mexican icon Canelo Alvarez (49-1-1, 34 KOs).

Canelo vs. Golovkin is a 12-round fight for the middleweight championship of the world presented by Golden Boy Promotions and GGG Promotions and sponsored by Tecate, BORN BOLD, Hennessy, Never Stop, Never Settle, O’Reilly Auto Parts, Fred Loya Insurance, Tsesnabank and Capital Holdings. The event will take place on Saturday, Sept. 16 at soldout T-Mobile Arena and will be produced and distributed by HBO Pay-Per-View®.