Fighter Profile & Biography: Gennady Golovkin
Gennady Golovkin, commonly referred to as “GGG”, is currently the WBA middleweight champion. His 89% knockout rate is the best of any titleholder in boxing, as he has had a streak of 15 consecutive knockouts. Golovkin possesses remarkable power in both hands, and is an extremely versatile fighter who uses his explosive strength and boxing IQ to earn devastating knockouts.
Background & Amateur Career
Golovkin hails from Kazakhstan and had a very impressive amateur career, as he collected many accolades on the way. In 2003, Golovkin won the World Amateur Boxing Championship in the middleweight division. In addition, he took home the Silver medal in the 2004 Olympics, which were held in Athens. Overall, Golovkin held an outstanding 345-5 record as an amateur fighter.
Early Career
In 2006, at the age of 24, Golovkin turned pro, making his debut in Germany against Gabor Balogh- where he scored his first career knockout. Golovkin started off his career with eight consecutive knockouts, until ultimately winning a unanimous decision against Mehdi Bouadla. By 2010, Golovkin won the interim WBA Middleweight title, with the WBA’s ridiculous practice of having multiple titleholders in the same weight class. No one took his title claims seriously in 2010. Now, however, Golovkin is the number two middleweight in the world and many fans and pundits regard him as the top dog in the division.
Emergence in the United States
GGG’s pro debut in the United States was in September of 2012, against Poland’s Grzegorz Proksa, and Golovkin dominated every aspect of the fight. The bout that put Golovkin on the map, for many fans, was the match against Gabriel Rosado. GGG was still a relatively unknown fighter at the time and the vicious display of power left Rosado’s face a bloody mess, impressing boxing fans everywhere. The fight was stopped on a 7th round TKO because of the brutal battering that Rosado took in the ring.
His next bout was against Nobuhiro Ishida, where he made easy work of him, stopping him on a knockout in the 3rd round. His next fight was supposed to be his toughest challenge, in Mathew Macklin, a man who gave Sergio Martinez a big test in the ring. Macklin was clearly overmatched, backing up and appearing to be fearful of Golovkin’s strength in each punch.
Golovkin tactfully uses head and body combos to annihilate opponents, which was clearly evidenced in this fight. Macklin was stopped in the 3rd round on a body blow that sent shockwaves through his organs, and throughout the boxing community. It was a memorable body shot that ranks up there with the all time great body wallops.
Golovkin’s next fight would be against the brash, heavy hitting Curtis Stevens. Stevens who talked a copious amount of trash prior to the bout, was dropped in the second round on a powerful left-handed hook, and was ultimately stopped in the eighth round of the fight.
The Future & Potential Fights
Golovkin’s humble approach outside the ring and dominant presence inside the ring has made him one of the most exciting fighters in the sport to watch. He also has a tremendous chin that allows him to withstand big punches if he does get hit. He tends to fight at least four times a year, which is rare for a fighter in this stage of their career. All of these factors have allowed Golovkin to continue growing his reputation, and earn honors as our 2013 Champion of the Year.
Golovkin’s next fight will be against Osumanu Adama, in a matchup where GGG will be a heavy favorite. The sky is the limit for the “humble assassin”, with a myriad of fights to be made for this emerging star. Golovkin has fought some decent competition, but has yet to have a marquee opponent.
Some fights that fans would love to see in the near future would be matchups against Canelo Alvarez, Peter Quillin, Sergio Martinez, and Andre Ward. An eventual matchup with Ward would be fantastic, but first, fans want to see the matchup against Martinez to determine who is the number one fighter in the middleweight division.
