Gennady Golovkin to venture to England for fight with welterweight champion Kell Brook
Gennady Golovkin is scheduled to defend his three middleweight belts against welterweight world champion Kell Brook of England at O2 Arena in London on Sept. 10, Golovkin promoter Tom Loeffler told The Times on Friday.
HBO is to televise the 160-pound bout, a week before the network airs a pay-per-view headlined by the man Golovkin (35-0, 32 knockouts) is supposed to fight next year, Canelo Alvarez.
The surprise switch to the 30-year-old, 147-pound Brook (36-0, 25 KO) came about because middleweight Chris Eubank stalled in signing a contract that was presented to him, according to Loeffler.
Promoter Eddie Hearn, who handles Eubank and Brook, then told Loeffler he’d present the same offer to Brook.
“This is something that happens to us often,” Loeffler said of Golovkin, who has posted 22 consecutive knockouts and won 16 straight middleweight title fights. “Opponents say they want to fight Gennady, but when it comes to signing … Eddie Hearn had a problem closing with Eubank. Kell Brook accepted the fight in one day.”
Golovkin said of Brook in a prepared statement: “I give him much respect for taking this fight.”
Brook has posted three consecutive technical knockouts against obscure foes in Britain after winning the International Boxing Federation belt from recent welterweight title challenger Shawn Porter by majority decision in a 2014 bout at StubHub Center.
Brook had been in a deal to fight World Boxing Organization champion Jessie Vargas, but that collapsed. Golovkin’s efforts to get WBO middleweight champion Billy Joe Saunders also went nowhere.
“Brook’s had a problem getting fights at welterweight as we have at middleweight, so it’s a perfect match … a throwback fight,” Loeffler said.
Loeffler defended the selection, even though a similar pairing between Alvarez and welterweight Amir Khan led to a destructive sixth-round knockout victory by Alvarez on May 7 in Las Vegas.
Given Golovkin’s dominance at middleweight, the choice of Brook provoked some outrage in the boxing community and on social media.
“Overpay the little guy to put his life in his hands, [Brook] gets credit for being brave in a fight he can’t win, and then when the inevitable happens, he has nothing to lose,” said Lou DiBella, an East Coast promoter who handles Premier Boxing Champions fights. “It’s good business, but anyone who thinks it’s good for the sport is out of their minds. … I can’t believe it or fathom it.
“This is not a super-fight, [Golovkin] should be fighting a true middleweight.”
Golovkin sought to fight Alvarez in September, but the popular Mexican fighter relinquished his World Boxing Council middleweight belt to Golovkin instead and accepted a Sept. 17 fight against little-known 154-pound champion Liam Smith of England.
“Gennady’s been disappointed by Saunders, disappointed that Eubank wouldn’t commit,” Loeffler said.
Loeffler said he made the best of the situation, taking a fight that will expand Golovkin’s name brand in a pay-per-view bout in Europe while potentially allowing him to boast he’s sold out Madison Square Garden, the Forum and O2 Arena in succession.
“Kell Brook was the first to not only talk about the fight, but make it happen,” Loeffler said. “If he wins, he makes boxing history. Kell Brook had the intestinal fortitude to challenge himself and challenge Gennady.
“There’s a lot of differences between this fight and Canelo-Khan. Kell Brook has great power as a welterweight and a great chin.
“And it keeps the Canelo storyline going.”
Loeffler said Golovkin will gather his WBC belt in Mexico City on Saturday and begin training under Abel Sanchez on Monday in Big Bear.
Golovkin has averaged more than 1.3 million viewers on HBO in three of his last four bouts aired by the network, and an overseas bout against Martin Murray shown in the afternoon in the U.S. in 2015 drew more than 800,000 viewers, the network reported.
UPDATES:
11:42 a.m.: This article has been updated with quotes and details about the event.
This article was originally published at 9:45 a.m.
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