On Saturday, June 8, 2019, Gennadiy Golovkin (39-1-1, 35 KOs) took care of business in his DAZN debut against Steve Rolls (19-1, 10 KOs) with a monstrous knockout win in Round 4.
Reminiscent of the Marco Antonio Rubio knockout back in October of 2014, Golovkin landed a chopping shot on the top of the head, which sent Rolls into another dimension.
The 164-pound catch weight bout was GGG‘s first fight since dropping a controversial decision to Mexican superstar and the new Middleweight kingpin, Canelo Alvarez, back in September of 2018.
Since that time, Canelo has fought twice, most recently adding the IBF Middleweight title in a decision victory over Daniel Jacobs in May.
With a nine-month layoff and coming off his first pro loss, spectators were anxious to see what Golovkin had left in the tank and whether a third fight against Canelo would even make sense.
But as a 25-to-1 underdog, was Rolls really the guy to answer the question of whether GGG still has anything left in the tank?
Perhaps not, but as early as Round 2 we saw interesting exchanges where Rolls gave as good as he got. If we’re chalking it up to inactivity, we can say it took GGG a couple rounds to settle in and get into his groove.
New head trainer Johnathon Banks admitted that he would have like to see GGG come out a bit sharper.
“I wanted a little bit more upbeat, a little bit more rhythm and a little bit more speed,” said Banks. “But again, we haven’t been doing this long. Next camp will be a little longer and we’ll have a little more time so that he can off right away in his rhythm.”
Was Golovkin untouchable? No. Was he just as good as he’s been in the past against opponents that are on the level of Steve Rolls? Yes.
Is there unfinished business with Canelo? Many people would say, absolutely. Those same people are clamoring for a third fight between Canelo and GGG, but it’s safe to say that Oscar De La Hoya is playing hard to get.
After GGG’s victory on Saturday night, De La Hoya was quick to throw shade at the Kazakhstan legend.
Nice 👍🏼 comeback win. Now fight a real fighter, win a belt, and I’ll consider doing the 3rd fight. #Caneloisyourboss
— Oscar De La Hoya (@OscarDeLaHoya) June 9, 2019
DAZN’s ringside reporter Chris Mannix asked Golovkin whether or not he’s interested in a third fight with Canelo and course, GGG’s eyes lit up.
“Everybody knows. Of course guys. I’m ready for September,” said Golovkin. “I’m ready for Canelo. Just bring him. If you want big drama show, just ask him.”
When asked if he’d prefer to have the rubber match in NYC, Golovkin quickly responded, “I want, I want.”
Whether or not Golden Boy Promotions will entertain a fight outside of Las Vegas remains to be seen. There is one other fighter who could possibly derail the option of a third fight between Canelo and GGG–Demetrius Andrade, who also fights on DAZN.
Andrade is the WBO titleholder and faces off against Maciej Sulecki on June 29. If Andrade is victorious, he’ll call on Canelo or GGG to face him before they entertain a third bout.
“He did his job and did what he was supposed to do against an inexperienced fighter,” said Andrade in an interview on DAZN after the GGG victory. “What we saw was cool, but we want to see the elite guys versus the elite guys.”
With another big knockout win on Saturday night, folks will certainly get behind seeing Golovkin in another marquee matchup, no matter who it is against.
And who knows, if we’re lucky, we may have an undisputed Middleweight champion by 2020.
GGG vs. Rolls Knockout Highlights
Gennady Golovkin gets the stoppage win over Steve Rolls in Round 4
Mannix: Were you looking for the knockout?
GGG: Of course!#Boxing #GGGRollspic.twitter.com/nc0VV3VjmG
