The long-awaited rematch between Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin is finally set for Sept. 15 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The rematch between Canelo Alvarez and WBA and WBC middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin was originally set to take place on Cinco de Mayo weekend. But when Canelo failed two drug tests in February for the performance-enhancing drug clenbuterol, he was suspended by the Nevada State Athletic Commission for six months, and Golovkin went on to face Vanes Martirosyan in Carson, California who he knocked out in two rounds.
Following Golovkin’s victory over Martirosyan, Golovkin’s promoter Tom Loeffler of K2 Promotions and Alvarez’s promoter Oscar De La Hoya of Golden Boy Promotions began working on details for a rematch.
But the negotiations hit a snag when Golovkin demanded a 50-50 split of the purse. Despite Golovkin being an undefeated champion, Alvarez is the much bigger draw and the biggest pay-per-view attraction in boxing.
But De La Hoya requested a 57½-42½ split in Alvarez’s favor and gave a deadline of Wednesday at 3 p.m. ET or else the rematch would be called off. 3 p.m. passed and no deal was done and the boxing world was left wondering if we would ever see Alvarez and Golovkin in the ring again.
But then as reported by ESPN’s Dan Rafael, Golden Boy Promotions president Eric Gomez threw a “Hail Mary” offer to Golovkin’s team which they accepted and the fight was finalized. The terms of the Hail Mary offer have not yet been revealed, but what we do know is that the fight is on and will take place on Sept. 15 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
I’m happy to inform that we have a fight September 15!!!! #CaneloGGG2
Feliz De informar que si tenemos pelea Septiembre 15!!! #CaneloGGG2 pic.twitter.com/gI3QmR0eXe— Oscar De La Hoya (@OscarDeLaHoya) June 13, 2018
The 36-year-old Golovkin and Alvarez, who turns 28 next month, fought to a disputed draw last September at the T-Mobile Arena.
Judge Don Trella had it as a draw 114-114, while judge Dave Moretti scored the fight for Golovkin 115-113. But judge Adalaide Byrd scored the fight 118-110 for Alvarez and was widely ridiculed for her scorecard. We at Elite Sports NY scored the fight for Golovkin 115-113.
Both fighters head into this rematch with several questions about them. For Golovkin it’s has he slowed down too much to defeat the younger Alvarez, and will he commit to attacking Alvarez body which he didn’t do in the first fight. For Alvarez the questions are, how will he handle being out of the ring for a year and the scrutiny he’ll face leading up to the fight about his failed drug tests.
We’ll get those answers in three months as the biggest fight that can be made in boxing is on.