Golovkin Taking Bereavement Break, April 26 Fight Is Off

The kid is showing that is family first, and deserves nothing but respect.

Gennady Golovkin was set to meet Andy Lee at the MSG Theater and on HBO April 26, but life got in the way. Gennady’s father Gennady Ivanovich Golovkin died, on Feb. 18 from a heart attack, and the boxer decided that he wants to sort out family affairs, and help his mom deal with the pain.

Thus, the WBA middleweight champ informed management, he would prefer not to enter the ring in April, and will take an indefinite leave from the sport.

Promoter Tom Loeffler talked to TSS, and said that Golovkin is the oldest brother in his clan, and that two older brothers died some time ago while in the armed forced, serving Russia.

“He wants to take care of his mom,” Loeffler told me, noting that only Gennady and twin brother Max are there to help mom deal with the absence of her husband, who was 68.

Loeffler and trainer Abel Sanchez attended a memorial service in Kazhkstan last week, and Loeffler said, he had a feeling that April date, which would have been a barn-burner of an atmosphere, with the Irish folk turning out in droves to root on Lee, would be a no go.

“Gennady’s manager called me today,” he said. Loeffler said that he’d understand if Lee took an interim fight, but would welcome Lee as Gennady’s next foe, if the Lou DiBella-promoter boxer decided to play the waiting game for Golovkin.

And when might Golovkin re-enter the fray? June, July, August or September? Too soon to say, Loeffler told me. “It’s hard to speculate,” he said. TSS’  Kelsey McCarson also spoke to Loeffler, and got him to narrow it down a bit. “Maybe four or five months, something like that,” said Loeffler to McCarson. “It’s hard to speculate, but I’d say realistically the earliest would be June or July depending on how everything goes with him.”

A 40 day mourning period is customary over there, he said.The promoter said it took 11 hours to fly to Germany, and then six to fly to Kazakhstan, making it clear that it isn’t a matter of going coast to coast to help his mom deal with the aftermath of the tragic passing.

McCarson spoke to trainer Sanchez, who made it clear the death hit all of Team Golovkin.

“This has been a blow, not only to his family, but to us,” said Sanchez to McCarson. “I think that we as a team need to give him time to heal and to take care of his mom, and since he is the patriarch of his family now, he needs to take care of a lot of things.”

HBO will look to keep the date, and fill the card with other combatants.

I admire the man’s committment to put off sport for what is deep and true and real. It’s further proof that this is a man of substance. Best of luck, from the TSS family, to the Golovkin clan.

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