Was GGG robbed in his recent clash with Canelo and what next for each fighter?

Following the first bout between Gennady Golovkin and Canelo Alvarez, it was clear it was a close fight, but Golovkin looked to get the upper hand. So when one of the judges, Adalaide Byrd, gave a score of 118-110 in favour of Canelo, it led to outrage. She was stood down from future major fights and the question was then, when is the rematch?

The pair met again most recently on the 15^th of September in Las Vegas and it was a similar story to the previous encounter. The online betting UK had GGG as the slight favourite heading in but it was Canelo who had his hand raised. The fight, at the sold out T-Mobile arena, was another close bout, with both setting the pace at times, looking to be more aggressive than in the first fight. It was a difficult fight to call but the Mexican had is hand raised, capturing a majority decision following scores of 115-113, 115-113 and 114-114. Canelo became the unified WBA (Super), WBC, IBF, IBO, Ring Magazine and lineal middleweight champion of the world.

It is split among the boxing world about whether Golovkin was robbed in the second fight but there is no doubt over the two bouts he is unlucky to come away with a draw and a loss. So what is next for two of the stars of middleweight boxing?

Canelo Alvarez

The Mexican extended his record to 50 victories, 1 loss and 2 draws from his 53 bouts. This is a stunning record considering he has been fighting the world’s best for some time. The 28 year old’s only loss came against Floyd Mayweather Jr, but this was still at an early stage of his career so was a good learning experience for him.

Next up for Canelo is a clash with the WBA super-middleweight champion, Rocky Fielding, at Madison Square Garden on December 15^th. This came as a huge shock, but Canelo will go in as the heavy favourite to extend his winning run. The Mexican will be stepping up in weight and Fielding is renowned as being a big super-middleweight so this could be a stern test for Canelo.

Canelo continues to remain very active so a third fight with Golovkin could be likely for him with both fighters having remained open about a third clash.

Source: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/boxing/article-6172795/Canelo-Alvarez-beats-Gennady-Golovkin-decision-Las-Vegas.html

Gennady Golovkin

This was the first defeat in the 36 year old’s professional career, which makes it difficult to take. His record now stands at 38 wins, 1 loss and 1 draw from his 40 bouts. The Kazakhstani has been one of the most feared fighters for much of his career, which has led to him landing these big fights at the latter stages of his career. Was he past his best in the fights against Canelo?

Golovkin is likely to have some time off but has four opponents who could be his likely next fight. First up it could be Canelo as he looks to avenge that hard fought loss following their two close encounters. Another fight could be a clash with previous opponent Daniel Jacobs. Jacobs provided one of the toughest tests of Golovkin’s career and has now been signed by Eddie Hearn so could offer the Kazakhstani a lucrative offer to take the rematch.

Another possible future opponent could be the WBO middleweight champion Billy Joe Saunders. Whether the 29 year old would be open to fight now Golovkin has lost his titles is up in the air, but talks between the two camps had been in progress previously. Finally a clash with WBC interim-champion Jermall Charlo is being put in motion as a final eliminator to another clash with Canelo.