Miguel Cotto’s stoppage of Sergio Martinez last month at the Garden solidified Gennady Golovkin as the best middleweight on the planet, a standing he plans to validate Saturday when he takes on Daniel “The Real Deale” Geale at Madison Square Garden.
HBO will televise the bout along with a co-feature matching unbeaten heavyweights Bryant Jennings of Philadelphia and Mike Perez of Ireland by way of Cuba. Welterweight Dusty Hernandez-Harrison of Washington, D.C. is also featured. Tickets remain available.
Though the undercard isn’t shabby, it’s Golovkin’s party. The punching machine from Kazakhstan moves into the main arena to defend his WBA and IBO titles. It is the latest step in what has been a campaign to transform a virtual unknown into one of boxing’s biggest stars. Golovkin (29-0, 26 KOs) is the first since 2008 to headline a card in the big arena that doesn’t include Cotto.
“There’s only select few fighters that would be able to fight in the big arena at the Garden,” said Tom Loeffler of K2 Promotions. “Gennady provides excitement. Anytime he steps in the ring, the fans know it’s going to be an exciting fight.”
Golovkin has been the biggest beneficiary of the cold war that prompted HBO to stop doing business with Golden Boy Promotions or their boxers. Needing to build new stars, HBO turned to Golovkin. He has appeared four times on the premium network, drawing higher and higher ratings with each performance.
“This is a very important fight for me to fight in the big arena at Madison Square Garden,” said Golovkin, who has fought twice in the Garden Theater. “Daniel is a great fighter. I have watched his tapes, and the last fight in particular, makes me realize this is not going to be an easy fight.”
Golovkin carries a streak of 16 straight knockouts into Saturday’s bout, where another impressive win against a two-time world champion in Geale not only would secure his stranglehold on the division but also would put Golovkin on the cusp of being a pay-per-view attraction.
“He made his debut on HBO in September 2012 as an undercard fighter in upstate New York and now he’s headlining at Madison Square Garden,” a television insider said. “There’s no question he’s one of the top four or five TV attractions in the sport.”
It has been a fast rise for a boxer who has been in the United States for two years. But the fierceness of his fights and his knockout power make an appealing contrast to the baby-faced smile he flashes outside of the ring. His profile is on the rise. He mixed with celebrities at the Golden Globe Awards, and appeared as himself during a training scene in “Rocky” on Broadway Wednesday night.
“He’s one of those special fighters in the prime of his career with a high level of technical ability and knockout power,” Loeffler said. “It provides a show and entertainment for the fans.”
With Martinez losing to Cotto in one-sided fashion, the division belongs to Golovkin now. But there are plenty of worthy challengers, including WBO champion Peter “Kid Chocolate” Quillin and IBF champ Sam Soliman. But Geale (30-2, 16 KOs) is no slouch. The Australian has a persistent motor and a decent punch.
“Mentally I have been preparing for the toughest fight of my life,” Geale said. “I have been wanting to fight Gennady for a while. I believe that things happen for a reason.”
Get to the Garden early. The winner of Jennings (18-0, 10 KOs) and Perez (20-0-1, 12 KOs) will be the mandatory challenger for a world title. Meanwhile, Hernandez-Harrison (22-0, 12 KOs) looks to stay unbeaten against Wilfredo Acuna of Nicaragua (15-14, 12 KOs).
PREDICTIONS: Golovkin, Perez, and Hernandez-Harrison, all by knockout.