Canelo v GGG III: Alvarez puts belts on the line in trilogy fight
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Canelo v GGG III odds
Canelo Alvarez defends his titles at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday in a third meeting with Gennady Golovkin and we’re here with the lowdown for the big fight.
The 32-year-old Mexican, the only boxer in history to be the undisputed champion at super middleweight, is the 2/9 favourite to beat Golovkin for a second time.
Here, we look at the first two fights, how they have performed since then and the Canelo v GGG odds ahead of the third part of the trilogy in Nevada.
Canelo v GGG I
Where and when: T-Mobile, Paradise, Nevada, Sept 16, 2017
The build-up: Alvarez knocked out Amir Khan in May 2016 and a few weeks later vacated his WBC middleweight title which was immediately awarded to Golovkin.
Canelo, cinnamon in Spanish, beat Julio Cesar Chavez Jr by unanimous decision a year later and announced he would next fight Kazakhstan’s Golovkin in a highly-anticipated bout in September.
The fight: A sell-out crowd watched the two men battle out a controversial split draw over 12 rounds, although most pundits had GGG ahead.
One of the judges, Adalaide Byrd, was ridiculed for scoring a classic fight 118-110 in favour of Canelo who dominated the opening couple of rounds with counter punches only to be put under pressure by the aggressive Golovkin.
Although Canelo started the middle rounds strongly, he soon tired and his opponent took over, taking rounds four to nine, although the challenger was ahead for the final three.
Byrd claimed Golovkin only won rounds four and seven, but when DAZN rescored the fight three years later, all three judges favoured the Kazakh, so it’s clear to see why eyebrows were raised by the outcome.
Result: Draw (114-114, 115-113 Golovkin, 118-110 Canelo)
Canelo v GGG II
Where and when: T-Mobile, Paradise, Nevada, Sept 15, 2018
The build-up: The rematch was supposed to take place in May, but two months before the fight Alavarez was handed a six-month suspension for failing a drugs test. The match-up was rescheduled for September.
The fight: Almost exactly a year later, the rematch was slightly less controversial as Canelo came out on top of a bout which The Ring magazine claimed was the best fight of the year.
Canelo Alvarez vs Gennady Golovkin seriously intense first face-off ahead of their trilogy fight on Sept 17th…
[📽️ @MatchroomBoxing] pic.twitter.com/PRMKSC7pSZ
— Michael Benson (@MichaelBensonn) June 24, 2022
Once again, the two men went the full 12 rounds, but this time the judges awarded the fight to Canelo by majority decision, a result that was disputed by many who watched this gripping battle.
Canelo threw more power punches to the body in the early stages when Golovkin struggled to bring his jab into play, but the Mexican started to tire from round nine and was caught several times.
Eighteen media outlets scored the fight and 10 gave it to Golovkin, seven had it as a draw and only one thought Alvarez had won.
Compubox, a scoring system run by two operators, had Golovkin landing 234 of 879 punches thrown (27%) compared with Canelo’s 202 from 622 (33%).
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Although the defending champion outlanded Canelo in eight of the 12 rounds, the Mexican struck more power punches in nine.
Alvarez said: “I showed my victory with facts. He was the one who was backing up. I feel satisfied because I gave a great fight. It was a clear victory.”
Golovkin did not attend the post-fight interview as he needed stitches for a cut over his right eye, but he was more diplomatic than his opponent.
“I’m not going to say who won tonight, because the victory belongs to Canelo according to the judges,” he said. “I thought it was a very good fight for the fans and very exciting. I thought I fought better than he did.”
Canelo since 2018
Alavarez has been much the busier of the two, winning seven successive bouts since that explosive night in Nevada, including a victory over Britain’s previously unbeaten WBO champion Billie Joe Saunders.
He won a middleweight unification bout against Daniel Jacobs and the WBO light heavyweight belt against Sergey Kovalev, before beating Callum Smith, Saunders and Caleb Plant to become the first undisputed world champion in the history of the 168-pound weight class.
Behind the scenes from media day with @Canelo 👀#CaneloGGG3 pic.twitter.com/lg6sD9ZcmE
— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) August 29, 2022
However, he lost for the first time in nine years with a unanimous decision defeat to Dmitry Bivol in May this year in a WBA super light heavyweight title fight.
Overall, Canelo’s record stands at 57-2-2, 39 of which have come by knockout.
Golovkin since 2018
Golovkin has only fought four times since the rematch and won on each occasion, his latest victory coming a day after his 40th birthday in April when he retained his IBF and IBO middleweight titles and added the WBA super middleweight belt to his collection with a ninth-round TKO against Japan’s Ryota Murata.
Fight week is almost here 🦾#caneloGGG3 #triloGGGy pic.twitter.com/P0F4m425jt
— Gennadiy Golovkin (@GGGBoxing) September 6, 2022
In his 44 fights as a pro, GGG has won every bout bar his two encounters with Alvarez, but could he finally get the better of him on September 17?
Canelo v GGG III
Where and when: T-Mobile, Paradise, Nevada, Sept 17, 2022
Golovkin is renowned for having one of the most durable chins in boxing history, having never been knocked down in 44 fights as a pro and 350 as an amateur, but he is in the twilight of his career and his powers have surely faded in the last few years.
He has also spent his whole career at middleweight and is fighting at 168 pounds for the first time.
HIGHLIGHTS: Watch the best bits from @Canelo’s media workout in San Diego! ⬇️ #CaneloGGG3 https://t.co/Wtptop0Gyh
— Matchroom Boxing (@MatchroomBoxing) August 30, 2022
Canelo is eight years Golovkin’s junior at 32 and is evens to win on points once again, the fight to go the distance is 8/13, while a second draw between the pair is priced at 20/1.
The keen golf fan is confident he can get the job done inside the distance, though, telling the BBC: “I think I’m going to end him before the 12th round. I’m going to put all my boxing skills, all my experience in boxing to get this done.
“I am a more dangerous fighter right now because of my loss. I’m just different right now since the last fight. I am more mature, stronger, and more confident. I want to try again (at light-heavyweight). Right now, I’m 100% focused on Golovkin and then that’s what I’m looking to do next year in May.”
The Mexican is 11/2 to win between rounds seven and nine, while it’s 13/2 between 10-12, although the way he is talking, four to six has appeal at 9/1 in the Canelo v GGG III odds.
All odds and markets correct as of date of publication
