SAUL Alvarez should feel pretty good about his performance against Gennady Golovkin in their rematch last week and I’m not even referring about the verdict that went his way.
In my last column, I opined that the only way for him to beat GGG was to stand up to the latter’s bullying tactics.
Though I figured GGG would still emerge victorious, I’d happily be wrong on the outcome but be spot on in the strategy department.
STYLE. True enough, unlike their first encounter, Canelo took the fight more to GGG and made the latter fight backwards on numerous instances—something he’s not too comfortable doing.
Canelo also showed up in incredible shape--something you have to be if you plan on going to war against GGG.
Alvarez boxed beautifully and alternated between standing his ground and moving laterally for better punching angles.
Style-wise he fought more effectively than the first fight which probably swayed two of the judges into dispensing a razor-thin verdict in his favor.
ROBBERY?? Which is not to say of course that Golovkin fought badly. It was a two-way fight fought in ebbs and spurts that could reasonably have been scored in favor for either man.
Golovkin was the steadier fighter, always busy and aggressive while Canelo landed some flashy looking combos and connected with cleaner, eye-catching shots.
A robbery it certainly was not. I’m a Golovkin fan too, but I have no problem with Canelo getting the nod.
Bad decisions can happen in a close fight but this was no Manny Pacquiao vs. Timothy Bradley.
THIRD. A trilogy is practically a no-brainer now, and considering how close the two fights have been you almost feel bad for GGG as he certainly could have scored 1 win and 1 draw from the first two fights but instead he now has one draw and one loss.
It gets even better for Canelo. Now that he has figured out the best way to beat GGG, he can only improve upon it while the latter gets older and presumably slower by the time they meet up for the third installment?
LAST ROUNDS. Are on newlyweds Miko and Anna Marie Orozco. Congratulations and cheers!