By: Sean Crose
“It is an absolute honour to announce I am now working with @gggboxing to promote his fights worldwide. Great man, great fighter – we look forward to bringing you the drama and excitement in arenas all over the world. #Oct5 @DAZN_USA”
The above tweet, which came courtesy of Matchroom honcho Eddie Hearn, let the world know on Thursday morning that Hearn has now teamed up with middleweight superstar Gennady “GGG” Golovkin. It’s a significant development in a middleweight saga that currently spans across numerous promotional outlets.
Golovkin, who had been the dominant figure in the division for years, was dethroned by Golden Boy Promotion’s Canelo Alvarez in highly controversial fashion over the course of two bouts during the past two years. With Canelo reportedly refusing to once again face the man most feel he still hasn’t proven himself against, Golovkin is currently set to face Sergey Derevyanchenko for the IBF middleweight title on October 5th at Madison Square Garden.
“My promotion company and I are happy to partner up with Eddie Hearn and Matchroom,” said Golovkin in a press release, “to bring the fans what they want – the best boxing and the best events. By teaming up with Matchroom, we stress that GGG Promotions is committed to presenting the biggest events in the most important arenas. I’m always happy to work with the best in business, and I’m looking forward to what this collaboration will bring to the boxing fans.”
Hearn was equally effusive.
“It’s an absolute honor to be involved with Gennady Golovkin’s career moving forward,” he claimed. “I’ve long admired Gennady as a fan and how he conducts his business and we team up at a very exciting moment. Gennady is one of the most recognizable and entertaining fighters on the planet and I can’t wait to get started to work together on the upcoming world title challenge against Derevyanchenko at MSG on October 5.”
Hearn also addressed the fact that a third fight with Canelo is the match most fans would like to see Golovkin engaged in. “We know the world wants to see the Canelo trilogy,” he claimed, “but there are so many opportunities out there for Gennady all over the world and we look forward to working together on them.
First things first is for Gennady to win the title on October 5.
Golovkin has long been promoted by K2 honcho Tom Loeffler. Today’s announcement doesn’t appear to have had a noticeable impact on that relationship (at least of yet), as Loeffler’s Twitter feed is still actively promoting the October 5th bout. Golovkin now joins fellow powerhouses Demetrius Andrade and Billy Joe Saunders as part of Hearn’s lineup in or around the middleweight division. With all three men fighting on DAZN, along with the aforementioned Canelo, it seems logical that a series of matchups will bring clarity to the middleweight division. The chaos of modern boxing, however, unfortunately offers no guarantees.
