One of the most anticipated bouts in the history of the middleweight division. About five years ago, it would have been an amazing fight that could draw attention from all corners of the world. Today, not so much. Nevertheless, the WBA decided that “Triple G” and Erislandy Lara must find holes in their busy schedules and choose a date for a title consolidation bout.
The long-awaited battle
The unfortunate state of affairs is that Golovkin and Erislandy are both past their prime and won’t show the same level of fidelity and skill as just a couple of years ago. Gennadiy Golovkin is 40, Lara is 39. Both had amazing careers, but their next bout sounds like a fight of former legends, not something that will spike ratings.
On the other hand, the match between two fighters was something that fans have been demanding for a long time. The current holder of the WBA middleweight belt is Golovkin, but Lara announced his ambition to take it years ago. The fight did not happen before and many thought that after the last exemption used by Golovkin, the association would let the belt stay with Golovkin for a while, but the organization announced that it ordered Golovkin to defend against Lara.
The date and terms of the bout must be negotiated within 30 days. It means that sides must decide when, where, and under which circumstances fighters will face each other in the ring before the end of October. It seems unlikely that the association will allow this match to be postponed indefinitely. The exact time frames were not specified, but WBA certainly wants it to happen sooner rather than later.
Two fighters with a drastically different last fight
Golovkin already used his exemption right in a fight against Canelo that he lost by unanimous decision. On the contrary, Erislandy Lara convincingly won his bout against Gary O’Sullivan with a TKO in the 8th round solidifying his bid for the championship fight and making a loud statement about his intentions regarding the upcoming bout against GGG.
