After the cancellation of the highly anticipated super fight rematch against Canelo Alvarez, unified middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin was adamant that he would still return to the ring on Cinco de Mayo.

A fight was arranged at the last minute against Vanes Martirosyan at the grand stage of the StubHub Centre in California and the Kazakhstan-born boxer didn’t disappoint.

Triple G retained his middleweight world titles on Saturday, re-establishing his name as ‘the baddest man on the planet’ once again.

Known to be one of the most prolific and explosive punchers in the sport, Golovkin outperformed and outclassed his rival throughout.

The bout lasted just two rounds and with 1:53 seconds still left in the clock, Martirosyan succumbed to the dominance of Golovkin as referee Jack Reiss counted him out.

The Armenian fighter went straight on to the attack right from the start while Golovkin adopted a patient game waiting to figure out his opponent’s strategy.

On the stroke of the bell in the first round, Martirosyan landed an impressive punch which spurred Triple G in action.

Golovkin didn’t leave any room for error though and went all-out once the fight resumed, hitting a devastating combination of an overhand right-hand hook to the temple of Martirosyan, followed by two lightning jabs and a final left, sending the 32-year-old to the floor.

With the win, Golovkin has equalled the record of 20 successful defences of the middleweight belts, previously set by Bernard Hopkins.

He sent out an open challenge to every boxer in the division to fight him for the titles.

Moments after the bout, the 36-year-old said: “I want everyone. I have a lot of belts. I challenge anyone to come and take my belts. I don’t care who. Let’s clean out the division.”

Witnessing the action, social media was abuzz with the punching power of Golovkin with most in shock of his supremacy inside the ring.

But the focus now shifts back to Alvarez, who is currently serving a six-month suspension handed by the Nevada Athletic Commission in April after failing a drug test.

A potential September clash is on the cards with both fighters geared up to take on each other once again as the boxing faithful hopes to see a brilliant rivalry revived.