It might not have been Saul Alvarez, but Gennady Golovkin looked very impressed on Saturday night at the StubHub Center in Carson, California when he stopped Vanes Martirosyan in the second round to keep his unbeaten record intact and pick up win number 38.
By now, boxing fans will certainly know the situation surrounding Canelo, and the fact that he tested positive for the clenbuterol substance which saw him removed from his highly anticipated rematch against Triple G on Cinco de Mayo weekend.
UNIFICATION
Rather than scrapping the whole event, though, Martirosyan was drafted in as a late replacement as the Kazakh knockout artist looked to stay active rather than wasting valuable time by waiting for another opponent - with Canelo expected to return to action over the Mexican Independence Day weekend.
While Ryota Murata - the WBA world middleweight champion - has emerged as Golovkin’s next option, Golovkin’s trainer Abel Sanchez has oddly claimed that his fighter will never be able to unify the middleweight division.
Obviously, it’s not down to talent. Sanchez has claimed that the only reason unification is out of the picture is because Billy Joe Saunders - who owns the WBO middleweight championship - is going to price himself out of ever stepping into the ring opposite Golovkin.
DEMANDS
According to Boxing News 24, Sanchez said: “The priority is to keep Gennady busy.
“We know now that he’s never going to be unified champion. [Billy Joe] Saunders is never going to fight him, because Saunders is looking for lottery money.
“He’s waiting for the opportunity and Saunders doesn’t want to fight him. He asked for $7 million to fight [Daniel] Jacobs. Imagine [what he would want to fight] Golovkin, Anthony Joshua money.
“So we’re kind of certain we’re not going to get that belt. The belts are not as important as what’s in Gennady’s best interest. He’s not bummed out. What he would have been bummed out about is not being able to fight the 5th today.”
Saunders has remained vocal about wanting to fight Golovkin, especially when it looked like Chris Eubank Jr was going to be the one to secure a mega-fight against Triple G before Kell Brook stepped up.
With Canelo still in the mix, alongside the likes of Murata, Jacobs, Jermell Charlo and Serhiy Derevianchenko, a bout against Saunders seems more difficult to put together than originally anticipated.
What do you make of Abel Sanchez claiming Gennady Golovkin won’t unify the middleweight division? Have YOUR say in the comments section below.