#1 ranked middleweight (160 lbs) Gennady Golovkin (33-0, 30 KOs) is making his HBO pay-per-view debut on Saturday night against David Lemieux (34-2, 31 KOs), and while fans may have been disappointed by Floyd Mayweather's two PPVs, this one promises to be a terrific fight with a high chance of a KO (honestly, probably by Golovkin, who is a big favorite). Golovkin has become a rising star in the sport, and tickets for this event are just about out. How he'll fare as a PPV draw is another story, but for now, we know he has built up a fanbase, particularly the Latin American audience who have been drawn to what he calls his "Mexican style" of boxing.
I know for a fact that you were thinking to yourself, "This story doesn't have Ronda Rousey in it!" And you were correct up until now. Golovkin tweeted out a thanks to the UFC's biggest star, who wore a snazzy shirt in support of the Kazakh KO creator:
Rousey has praised (and actually met) Golovkin before, as seen in this interview from July after the ESPY awards were wrapped up:
And so begins the week-long debate, "Can Rousey beat Gennady Golovkin?"
Bloody Elbow will have extensive coverage of Golovkin vs. Lemieux all week long, leading up to our live play-by-play of the HBO PPV event ($59.95 HD/$49.95 SD) on Saturday, October 17th from Madison Square Garden in Manhattan, New York. For daily boxing coverage, including next week's show, go to Bad Left Hook.