Future Hall of Famers Canelo Alvarez, Gennady Golovkin plot separate pursuits after end of an era

Canelo Alvarez embraced the final challenge from his heated rival Gennady Golovkin Saturday night, and then after defeating the long-reigning middleweight champion, Alvarez hugged the man he had finally definitively conquered.

“Thank you so much, my friend. Thank you, Golovkin … we gave the fans three good fights,” Alvarez said to the 40-year-old whose career record (42-2-1) is only blemished by his trilogy outcomes against the four-division champion from Mexico.

Alvarez, 32, delivered a crisp, energetic showing, winning six of the first seven rounds on all three scorecards, getting the best of the majority of brief exchanges that occurred.

“Probably a tactical mistake,” Golovkin concluded of the inactivity that plagued him. “There was a plan to bring Canelo closer … and then it was too late.”

The victory stood as redemption to Alvarez’s first loss in nine years, a May unanimous-decision defeat to unbeaten 175-pound champion Dmitry Bivol.

In that bout, the younger and bigger Bivol went right at Alvarez, relying on hurtful jabs that set up heavy blows that fatigued Alvarez in the late going.

There was none of that Saturday, as Golovkin’s increasing age limited him. His steps during the first half of the bout were especially plodding. His reactions were slower than in the fierce 2017 and 2018 battles with Alvarez and he looked winded.

"He didn't show his right hand," Alvarez said. "I just did my job. And I was able to hit him, too."

An anticlimactic tone took over.

The judges’ scoring of the bout – 116-112 (Dave Moretti), 115-113 (Steve Weisfeld), 115-113 (David Sutherland) – was curious again, only because Alvarez appeared to have won by a far wider count.

A storied history

This was not like those first two classic brawls between these champions, when tight rounds were the norm and Golovkin torched the judging that left him with a 2017 draw against Alvarez, labeling them “terrorists.”

In the 2018 rematch, Alvarez’s role as the aggressor paced him to victory in another tightly contested outcome that Golovkin again protested.

The irony dripped this time when Golovkin said, “it’s not up to me to talk about scoring.”

Alvarez (58-2-2) said he was driven by the loss to Bivol, returning to what he says is his most comfortable division and posting his sixth victory in six bouts as a 168-pounder.

“I have gone through some difficult things in my life and the only thing you can do (in defeat) is to try and continue to move forward,” Alvarez said. “I have gone through defeats and have shown (they) are great, (because they) enable me to come back and show humility.”

In front of 19,519 at T-Mobile Arena, Golovkin landed only 120 of 521 punches thrown. At times, it seemed his feet were mushing through wet concrete as he tried to pursue Alvarez. He twice whiffed on left-handed blows and was relegated to repeated jabs without sufficient follow-ups.

Undisputed super-middleweight champion Alvarez out-landed Golovkin, 85-46, in power punches, landing 39% of those blows while Golovkin connected on just 27%.

Alvarez was clearly the better man, landing body blows that backed up the current middleweight champion, causing Golovkin to wince and uncharacteristically retreat from exchanges.

After saying he wanted to close the trilogy by knocking out Golovkin, Alvarez admitted he fought with a right wrist cartilage tear that dates to his victory over Caleb Plant last fall. Surgery is required and up to six-to-12 months of recovery, he revealed, confiding, “I can’t even pull grass.”

What's next for GGG

Despite their combined 76 career knockouts, neither man touched the canvas in the trilogy’s 36 rounds.

“We congratulated each other and we moved on,” from the bitterness, Golovkin said. “We realize, at this level, this sport is so dangerous. We felt content to lay down our rivalry.”

Both are certain first-ballot International Boxing Hall of Fame members.

“(Golovkin’s) a really good fighter. He’s strong and that’s why we are here, and I am glad to have shared the ring with him,” Alvarez said. "We had three fights that will go down in the history of boxing."

Golovkin said he doesn’t foresee being tempted to retire, despite having his health and a personal-best $20 million purse to enjoy with his family while residing on the Southern California coastline.

His most competitive next foes would be either World Boxing Council middleweight champion Jermall Charlo or unbeaten former 154-pound champion Jaime Munguia.

“I am still champion,” Golovkin said in reference to the two middleweight belts he possesses. “I still have this fire burning inside me, this passion for boxing. I feel fresh, still have good power, and the first opponent that comes (at me), I will be looking to return to the ring.”

What's next for Canelo

Similarly stubborn, Alvarez said he’s determined to fight Bivol again, as long as the Russian can defeat unbeaten former super-middleweight champion Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez in their Nov. 5 World Boxing Association title bout.

“Right now, I need rest. I need to get strength back in my hand and my body, and I will come back stronger than ever,” he said. “It is very important for me and my legacy.”

So was what he accomplished Saturday night, closing the series that was launched by Golovkin first calling out Alvarez seven years ago.

In the ring afterward, Golovkin said, “I want to shake hands with Canelo,” reaching to clutch the hand that decided the bout. “He’s a real warrior.”