On September 15th the combat sports world witnessed another classic middleweight battle as Saul “Canelo” Alvarez battled Gennady Golovkin “GGG” for a second time at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The first fight was mired in controversy as the two warriors fought to a disputed draw almost a year ago to the date of last Saturday’s contest. Many fans thought GGG won the first fight, having landed more punches than Alvarez (chiefly the jab) and controlled the center of the ring, while Alvarez circled and fought off the ropes for most of the fight. However, Canelo landed beautiful combinations throughout the fight; GGG’s face told the story of the effectiveness of those punches.
With such a controversial ending, naturally a rematch made sense. The public, the trainers, and of course the fighters wanted closure! The rematch was set for May 5th of this year. Then came another bomb: clenbuterol. Weeks before the scheduled rematch Alvarez tested positive for the banned substance. The rematch was eventually cancelled. GGG went on to demolish last-minute replacement Vanes Martirosyan in two rounds. Afterwards, the accusations began: GGG blaming Canelo for the cancellation of the fight and accusing him of cheating. Abel Sanchez, GGG trainer, did most of the mudslinging in that regard, however, not believing the “tainted meat” excuse that resulted in the cancellation of the fight and Alvarez receiving a six-month suspension and leaving the possibility of a rematch in doubt.
After months of failed negotiations the rematch was finally scheduled for September 15. The buildup was very intense in the wake of the failed drug test, and the back and forth barbs thrown at each camp. Abel Sanchez accused Canelo of running throughout the first fight, stating that if he would have met GGG in the middle of the ring he would have gotten knocked out. Canelo promised to meet GGG in the middle of the ring in the rematch, and stated that he was seeking a knockout this fight. All the drama, the animosity, that had been brewing from the first fight all came to a head this past Saturday night, and much like the first fight, ended with some measure of controversy. . . .
What surprised me the most was that Alvarez fought as promised. During the stare down after the weigh-in he made a point to rush up to GGG and get forehead to forehead, prompting both corners to forcibly separate the fighters. He stood in the middle of the ring from the opening bell, used his head and upper body movement to set up crisp, powerful combinations with the intent to punish and ultimately put away GGG. Similar to the first fight Golovkin used the jab and boxed, throwing combinations but never truly letting his hands go in the fight.
The speed and fluid defense clearly gave the Mexican the advantage in the fight. Canelo always seemed to beat GGG to the punch, and not simply because he had the faster hands. Golovkin still fought tentatively in the rematch, though he threw more combinations and landed cleaner shots on Alvarez this time around. Also similar to the first fight, GGG came on later in the fight. Max Kellerman from HBO Boxing even went so far as to say that GGG “is looking old” in the middle rounds, as Canelo was consistently beating him to the punch and landing cleaner shots.
Canelo seemed to tire a bit in the last three rounds as Golovkin seemed to pick up speed and land hard combinations to the head. The two battled to the final bell, with back and forth exchanges in the 12th. As the scorecards were read, the winner by Majority Decision was Alvarez (114-114, 115-113 x 2). As the fight concluded, however, I thought Alvarez won a clear unanimous decision (116-112).
Much like the first fight, the result of this fight was controversial, as many media personalities and boxing fans believing GGG was robbed. This confuses me, as Alvarez clearly landed the more effective shots. He did what he said he would do by standing in the middle of the ring and fighting GGG “Mexican Style,” which seems appropriate as he is Mexican. Did you find the result controversial? Interested in your comments below. . . .
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