Gennady "GGG" Golovkin called out the big names in the middleweight division after knocking out Daniel Geale, billed as the toughest fighter he'd faced in his career, before Round 3 had ended on July 26.
Instead, Golovkin received more cold shoulders from the likes of WBC middleweight champion Miguel Cotto, whose camp has stated Golovkin's profile isn't high enough to warrant the risk.
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Golovkin has the highest knockout rate among all champions in boxing, but his resume lacks star-caliber victories. By the same token he and his camp claim to be avoided by the big names and titleholders. Golovkin is an active champion, and he will be back in the ring against Marco Antonio Rubio on October 18-the fight will be the first of his career in California.
Golovkin rarely complains about his inability to make the big fights happen though, preferring to plug along and let his knockouts do the talking. Rubio is no major name-he's most known for a loss to Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in 2012-but GGG thinks this is a solid matchup nonetheless.
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"This is a big step for me ... first fight in L.A., biggest name in the division from Mexico," Golovkin said. "Good boxer, smart, not scared. It's a good fight for me."
Golovkin's promoter Tom Loeffler is publically unconcerned with his star fighter taking on another fight in which the opponent is a lightly regarded underdog, because he believes Golovkin's style sells itself.
"We've brought him from the media capital of the world to the entertainment capital of the world ... the reason HBO is behind him is that he wants to stay active, that he'll fight anybody and is dedicated ... he's proven himself as the blue-chip star you can invest in," Loeffler told The Los Angeles Times.
"His fights are broadcast in more than 100 countries, and his style - the knockouts - translate to everywhere in the world. We think with Gennady, we're capable of bringing back the idea of a true world champion. The way he's performing, it's having the Mike Tyson effect on others, but we believe he's right on schedule to where we want him to be.
"Two years ago, he was an unknown. Now, he's in the top five in most pound-for-pound lists. The West Coast fight is part of our strategy ... step by step, we believe 2015 will be a breakout year."
Loeffler may be right; while Cotto's team is planning to fight in December before setting up a super fight on Cinco De Mayo weekend vs. Canelo Alvarez, the WBC has ordered him to defend his title against the winner of Golovkin-Rubio.
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