Gennady "GGG" Golovkin wowed fans in late October with his fourth knockout victory of the year, icing knockout artist Curtis Stevens in Madison Square Garden and solidifying his bid as the Fighter of the Year.
GGG is as relentless about staying active as he is inside the ring, and has inked his next opponent to a February 1st date--Martin Murray. Or has he?
Following his win over Stevens, Golovkin said he is ready for all comers and specifically called out Sergio "Maravilla" Martinez. Golovkin's trainer Abel Sanchez had his doubts about Martinez's willingness to scrap, though.
"I don't think Sergio will fight us. I think Sergio has a fight against Cotto and that's a big money fight for him. Why take a chance against a big, strong middleweight like Gennady when Sergio is getting up in age and doesn't really need someone like Gennady? People will consider him the middleweight king until someone beats him, but I think Gennady has proved that he belongs right along side him in consideration."
Sanchez's words proved prophetic. Martinez awaits word from Miguel Cotto, but should he be turned down an offer to face Marco Antonio Rubio has already been sent.
It was reported that GGG would continue to build his legend against Martin Murray, who was last seen fighting tooth and nail with Martinez in Argentina, where he dropped a narrow unanimous decision. Murray said on Twitter, however, that is not the case.
Just to let people know that I'm not fighting Golovkin on Feb 1st but we're fighting on the same bill. Looking forward to it when it happens
— Martin Murray (@MartinMurrayBox) November 10, 2013
"Just to let people know that I'm not fighting Golovkin on Feb 1st but we're fighting on the same bill. Looking forward to it when it happens," Murray tweeted.
Golovkin's manager Oleg Hermann seemed peeved when discussing the matter, accusing Murray of ducking Golovkin despite being the mandatory challenger. "Murray does not want to box Golovkin and for a long time he's refused to do so." Hermann said. "Gennady primarily wanted to go against Murray, and we were glad that the WBA ordered this fight. Unfortunately, Murray refuses to go against Golovkin. We changed our plan and we're negotiating with another opponent."
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