The long awaited HBO pay-per-view featuring the Gennady Golovkin vs David Lemieux middleweight title unification bout at Madison Square Garden is finally here. This Saturday, the Garden will be sold out and the two knock out artists will take center stage.
Since the fight was announced many months ago, Golovkin has been a huge favorite to beat Lemieux, and now that we are closer to the fight that has not changed. Golovkin is 33-0 with 30 KOs and he has held a piece of the middleweight world title since August of 2010. In September of 2012 he made his debut in the United States, and he has gone on since then to become a star in the boxing world.
Since his US debut, he has won all 10 of his fights by stoppage, and he is currently ranked the number one Middleweight in the world. HBO executives think they have built him up enough to the point where this is his first time headlining a pay-per-view event.
You have to give credit to Lemieux and the promoters, who have done a good job of looking credible. Golovkin is not without his critics as some do point out that he is not a speed demon and is very hittable. As little chance as Lemieux is getting, he does have a 24-2 record, so he does have the power to put an end to the fight. And in the pre-fight interviews and face-offs they have had, Golovkin has struggled with his English while Lemieux has come across as very confident and said all the right things.
If Lemieux can do what he says he is going to do, he will make history, but judging from the lines at the sport books, no one is giving Lemieux much of a chance.
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The co-feature is a WBC Flyweight title defense for Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez as he takes on Brian Viloria. Gonzalez was named the #1 pound for pound fighter in the world by The RING magazine after the retirement of Floyd Mayweather Jr, so he is fighting for the first time with the attention of the entire boxing world on him. Gonzalez has a perfect 43-0 record and boat loads of international experience.
He also isolated himself by doing his preparation in Costa Rica and not at home in Nicaragua to avoid distractions. and he seems ready to face the increased expectations this fight on the world stage will bring. Viloria is a tough and experienced fighter who was a long-time holder of the WBA and WBO Flyweight belts, and he has won four straight fights, the last three by KO.
However, Viloria will be 35 years old at the end of November and most observers think his best days are behind him. Viloria however has stated the fight against the now No. 1 guy in the world has given him extra motivation, and he is coming off a strong training camp. As far as experience goes, Viloria has faced the best in the world for years and definitely he has the savvy to make it a fight.
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Check out our latest video blog where we review the latest odds for the entire Golovkin vs Lemieux pay-per-view.
