Gennadiy Golovkin has the opportunity to become a six-time world champion when the formidable Kazakh takes on Sergiy Derevyanchenko this weekend.
‘GGG heads back to Madison Square Garden once again in his quest to hold a version of the world crown every year for the last decade.
Golovkin is a (-500) favorite in his fight with Sergiy Derevyanchenko (+350). The 33-year-old Ukranian underdog is comparatively short on experience, with just 14 pro bouts on his resume.
But his only career loss – a split decision against Daniel Jacobs last October – is actually a good indication that he won’t be completely overmatched against Golovkin.
Jacobs, himself, lost narrow split decisions to GGG and Canelo Alvarez. If Derevyanchenko didn’t look out of his league against Jacobs, you can expect him to give GGG a tougher fight than most are expecting.
In the UK, the 37 year-old is 1/5 on with the bookmakers to beat the Brooklyn-based Ukrainian. Derevyanchenko is 7/2.
Looking forward to returning to his old haunt for the sixth time, Golovkin is ready to pit his wits against another top operator.
Golovkin
“I’m so excited,” said Golovkin. “First of all, I’m happy to be back home, my second home.
“Thank you to my family at MSG for always supporting me.
“Of course, I’m very excited right now. Right now, I work with the best people from boxing.
“I have the best opponent, Sergiy. I’ve known him for a long time and he’s a very good fighter.
“This is a real fight. I’m a little bit scared because he’s good.
“I know his team is very strong. And I’m scared because he looks good.
“He looks strong. He feels it’s his time right now. Maybe – this is boxing, nobody knows.
“So, if you want to watch a real show, a real fight, come to MSG on October 5 or watch live on DAZN.”
For his part, Derevyanchenko could have already been a world champion after sharing twelve rounds with Daniel Jacobs and having solid claims to taking the decision.
As it turned out, Jacobs got the W.
END
Derevyanchenko now must prove he has what it takes to become a big player in the division.
“I’m really excited and happy to be at Madison Square Garden,” said Derevyanchenko.
“Thank you to my team, and I want to give thanks to Gennadiy Golovkinfor the opportunity as well.
“I know exactly who I’m getting in the ring with. He’s the former middleweight champion of the world.
“He’s one of the best fighters in the world, but his time is coming to an end. I want to be the one that makes that time come to an end.”
Golovkin v Derevyanchenko is live on DAZN in the USand Sky Sports in the UK.
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