Tonight’s boxing spotlight is shining squarely on the Middleweight title superfight between Gennady Golovkin and Canelo Alvarez. But interestingly, that’s not the only piece of Middleweight gold on the line today.
This afternoon, Billy Joe Saunders (24-0; 12 KO) defends his WBO Middleweight (160 lb.) title against Willie Monroe, Jr. (21-2; 6 KO). That WBO title is the division’s only major title not on the line in Canelo vs. GGG. Saunders vs. Monroe will be airing in a free live stream (US and Canada only) on YouTube airing today, Saturday, September 16 with a fight time of 5:30 p.m. ET / 2:30 p.m. PT. The main event should begin at around 6:30 PM ET/3:30 PM PT.
As far as world title fights go, this one is undeniably a bit lackluster, and not only because it’s paired against such a great fight. Saunders won the belt from Andy Lee in 2015. In the nearly two years since, he’s only fought once, a somewhat uninspired win over Artur Akavov last December. Monroe is probably best known to US fans for his 2015 loss to GGG. He’s 2-0 since and coming in off a win over Gabriel Rosado.
Neither man is much of a power puncher, as their low KO ratios indicate. Saunders is probably the better fighter overall - at his best he’s been able to handle a fighter of Monroe’s caliber. But Monroe is also a tricky fighter at times, skilled enough to keep Saunders honest. And Saunders hasn’t actually turned in a really good performance in a long time. The champ is the favorite here at -335, and he should be. But if he comes in looking poor, Monroe could pull off the upset.
Of course no matter who wins this, the real drama will be in what happens next - it would be great to see the winners of today’s two fights square off and unify the division. Golovkin has talked about that in the past, but boxing politics always makes that a tough feat to pull off. But with the entire divisional title scene up for grabs on one day, it’s exciting to think about.
Bloody Elbow will have live coverage of Saunders vs. Monroe right here, and be sure to watch the free live stream above.
SAUNDERS vs. MONROE RESULTS
Billy Joe Saunders def. Willie Monroe, Jr. by unanimous decision (117-111, 115-114, 117-112) to remain the WBO middleweight champion
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