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Golovkin Trainer Sanchez Says Golovkin-Chavez Jr Is His “Dream Fight”

This year in boxing has gotten off to a pretty underwhelming start, hasn’t it? The top ten pound for pound types either haven’t fought yet, or weren’t overly thrilling when they gloved up. There are probably a half dozen reasons why this first quarter has underperformed, and if I had to choose one main reason, I’d blame Floyd Mayweather. (Ha, you #BoxingHeads thought I was going to #BlameBob? LOL.) No, I think that “Money” has siphoned much of the oxygen, and a lot of the attention and man-hours of many folks who we entrust to put together the fights that thrill and entrance us.
Hopefully, now that Floyd has his “next” sorted out, the matchmaking will pick up, and we’ll doing less autopsying and more rhapsodizing in the coming months.
Here’s a bout that will entice and likely will be among the top five most watched scraps of the year, if it gets made: Gennady Golovkin, the 160 pound champ, the Bieber-faced “Good Boy” who is seeking to transition from cult fave to that sort of guy who is recognized outside the circles us degenerates traffic in, against the son of the legend, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., the one-man reality show who is a news maker before during and after his bouts, whether it be for toking, or scoffing at the arcane tradition of making weight, or looking to land jaw-breaker hooks to every guy he steps in with.
I checked in with Golovkin’s trainer, Abel Sanchez, for a report on how the kid is doing emotionally–his dad died last month, and he postponed an April 26 HBO date to help his mom during a difficult time–and if indeed Golovkin will tangle with Junior this summer.
“Is that fight next? I hope so,” Sanchez told me. “Gennady’s promoter Tom Loeffler and Chavez’ promoter Bob Arum are trying to put the finishing touches on it. I believe it will be pay per view.”
I told Sanchez a theory, that the stakes of this one, it being a PPV, against Chavez, who is one of the five biggest names in the biz, and a legit ratings-puller, could well push Golovkin more than ever before. “We haven’t seen close to what he’s capable of if motivated by a challenge.”
The bout would indeed be at 168 pounds, a step up for GGG, but Sanchez said he’d take care of business versus Junior, and then hop back down, and likely aim to unify at 160 pounds. “The Chavez fight is my dream fight,” Sanchez said, “and I think the styles will make for a memorable fight.”
Chavez has a stern chin, maybe the best of any Golovkin foe to this point, no?
“Absolutely, if he has anything like his fathers’ chin, GGG will have to work for his 17th straight KO. We will be witnesses to a great fight.”
So, are you saying that Junior will be a super tough test for Golovkin? Could this bout be a tougher challenge than the die-hard ‘Golovkin is God’ squad are saying it will be? “Only because Chavez Junior will take more beating,” the trainer said. “I hope he has a smart corner, because Golovkin could cause some severe permanent damage.”
Sanchez repeated his belief that his kid will down down as “one of the greatest fighters” of all-time, but he acknowledged that Chavez does possess a couple attributes. “He poses some threats, but in order for Golovkin to make his mark he has to fight those that are considered a threat. His size at fight time will be hard to deal with.”
Sanchez said Gennady is improving emotionally following the death of his dad. He and his twin bro Max have been there for their mom, who had to deal with the heart-break of two older brothers passing away years back, as well. “We hope to take Gennady to the Pacquiao-Bradley fight,” Sanchez said.
I’ve never hid, or hope I didn’t, that I like what Golovkin represents to the sport. Talented person, and by all accounts, a more than decent human being. I see him as a credit to boxing, and root for him to weather this storm, and get back to where he’s able to get into a flow, and be master of his domain. I’m not of the camp who sees him doing a quickie demo job on Junior, and am right there with Sanchez, noting that Junior will be a comparative hulk on fight night. Talk to me…let’s assume this deal gets hammered out shortly…Will Junior be Golovkin’s toughest out? Is the vaunted Golovkin power going to be present at 168? Weigh in, in our Forum!
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Boxing Odds and Ends: A Farewell to Bob Sheridan, Canelo-Charlo Notes and More

Boxing broadcaster Bob Sheridan passed away at his home in Henderson, Nevada on Wednesday, Sept. 27. Sheridan was 79 years old.
As noted by Ron Borges in a 1999 story for the Boston Globe, “Colonel Bob” (an honorary title) called “more fights in more places watched by more people than anyone else in history.” All told, he was the blow-by-blow announcer for more than 10,000 fights, a number that included more than a hundred heavyweight title fights. The irony is that he was more well-known in places like Australia than in the United States. This was because when boxing switched from closed-circuit to pay-per-view, Sheridan didn’t make the transition, except for those tuning in overseas. During his long association with Don King, he was the anchor of the international feed.
Born in Boston to Irish immigrants who arrived in the U.S. as toddlers, Sheridan grew up in nearby Lexington, Massachusetts. He attended the University of Miami on a baseball scholarship and cut his teeth as a boxing broadcaster covering Chris Dundee’s Miami Beach club fights on WGBS radio.
Sheridan’s first heavyweight title fight was the 1968 match in Oakland between Jerry Quarry and Jimmy Ellis for the vacant WBA belt (Ellis won a narrow 15-round decision). He would subsequently sit ringside for some of the sport’s most legendary fights, including the “Rumble in the Jungle” (Ali-Foreman), the “Thrilla in Manila,” (Ali-Frazier III), and Tyson-Holyfield II, the infamous “bite fight.”
During his early days on closed-circuit telecasts, Sheridan was often forced to take on a celebrity as his color commentator. For Ali’s fight with Chuck Wepner, it was Pearl Bailey. For the “Rumble in the Jungle,” it was British TV talk show personality David Frost. (Sheridan recalled that Frost was very professional, assuaging his qualms that he would be a train wreck.)
In an article for The Ring written seven years ago, New Jersey good guy Henry Hascup noted that it was a miracle that Sheridan was still alive considering his myriad health issues which included seven heart attacks and a quadruple bypass. He famously announced one fight with his cardiologist sitting next to him with a defibrillator just in case.
Colonel Bob was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2016, the second announcer accorded this honor following the legendary Don Dunphy. May he rest in peace.
***Will Canelo-Charlo be a sellout?
The word on the street here in Las Vegas is that tickets to Saturday’s card at T-Mobile Arena headlined by the match between Canelo Alvarez and Jermell Charlo are moving very slow. Without a strong walk-up sale or serious discounts, goes the scuttlebutt, the event has scant chance of being a sellout.
A common explanation for the sluggishness (assuming it is true) is the date on the calendar. The event arrives too soon after Mexican Independence Day Weekend. For many Mexicans and Mexican-Americans, the mid-September holiday is an occasion to spend money, perhaps a mini-vacation to Las Vegas or flying out of town to visit friends and family. Money that otherwise would have been spent to see Canelo Alvarez in action had already been spent, or so it is theorized.
At Stub Hub, last we checked, prices for a single ticket ranged from $282 to $31,850.
The four-fight SHOWTIME pay-per-view, which includes a delicious match between super welterweights Jesus Ramos and Erickson Lubin, carries a list price of $84.99. It airs at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT.
***A new phenom?
We sat mesmerized at the Mayweather Boxing Club a few days ago watching a boxing trainer work the pads with Curmel Moton who makes his pro debut in a 6-round featherweight fight on the Canelo-Charlo undercard. One did not need a trained eye to see that Moton is very advanced for his age.
Moton, a protégé of Floyd Mayweather Jr, is 17 years old and looks 15. As an amateur, he lost his first and last fights, but was 48-0 in-between.

Curmell Moton and Tank Davis
In a conversation with Fight Hype, Mayweather said that Moton would be a good match for Leigh Wood right now. Wood is the reigning WBA featherweight champion.
Mayweather uses hyperbole very sparingly. The last neophyte over whom he gushed as effusively was Gervonta “Tank” Davis. History would show that Floyd wasn’t blowing smoke.
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International Brotherhood of Prizefighters Rankings: Week of September 24, 2023

What’s in a nickname, you ask? Zhilei “Big Bang” Zhang exhibited shades of the legendary “Brown Bomber”, Joe Louis; the exception being he conducts business from the port side. Zhang’s 3rd round stoppage of Joe Joyce sees Joyce exiting the top 10 in the heavyweight division. Also exiting due to inactivity is Andy Ruiz and Luis Ortiz, who last fought each other on September 4, 2022. Gaining entries are Daniel Dubois, Dillian White and Derek Chisora, at 8, 9 and 10 respectively.
At 140, Richardson Hitchins earned his asterisk with a one sided decision over Jose Zepeda. Hitchins enters the top 10 in the 7th slot, while Zepeda falls to 8th. Zhankosh Turarov drops to 9th in the world and immediately underneath him, rounding out the top 10, is Elvis Rodriguez. Scotland’s Josh Taylor gets bumped from the 10th slot.
At 108, World Champion Kenshiro Teraji defended his title with a stoppage of 4th ranked Hekkie Budler in round 9 of a scheduled 12. Budler drops to 7th, see list for reshuffle.
*Please note that when the fighter’s name appears with an asterisk it represents a movement in ranking from the previous week.
105lbs
♛ Vacant
1 Thammanoon Niyomtrong (Knockout CP Freshmart) (Thailand)
2 Panya Pradabsri (Petchmanee CP Freshmart) (Thailand)
3 Oscar Collazo (USA)
4 Ginjiro Shigeoka (Japan)
5 Daniel Valladares (Mexico)
6 Yudai Shigeoka (Japan)
7 Melvin Jerusalem (Philippines)
8 Masataka Taniguchi (Japan)
9 Rene Mark Cuarto (Philippines)
10 Yudai Shigeoka (Philippines)
108lbs
♛ Kenshiro Teraji (Japan)
1 Jonathan Gonzalez (Puerto Rico)
2 Masamichi Yabuki (Japan)
3 Sivenathi
4 Elwin Soto (Mexico)*
5 Regie Suganob (Philippines)*
6 Shokichi Iwata (Japan)*
7 Hekkie Budler (South Africa)*
8 Carlos Canizales (Venezuela)
9 Daniel Matellon (Panama)
10 Miel Fajardo (Philippines)
112lbs
♛ Vacant
1 Sunny Edwards (England)
2 Artem Dalakian (Ukraine)
3 Julio Cesar Martinez (Mexico)
4 Angel Ayala Lardizabal (Mexico)
5 David Jimenez (Costa Rica)
6 Jesse Rodriguez (USA)
7 Ricardo Sandoval (USA)
8 Felix Alvarado (Nicaragua)
9 Seigo Yuri Akui (Japan)
10 Taku Kuwahara (Japan)
115lbs
♛ Juan Francisco Estrada (Mexico)
1 Roman Gonzalez (Nicaragua)
2 Kazuto Ioka (Japan)
3 Fernando Martinez (Argentina)
4 Junto Nakatani (Japan)
5 Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (Thailand)
6 Kosei Tanaka (Japan)
7 Andrew Moloney (Australia)
8 Francisco Rodriguez Jr. (Mexico)
9 Pedro Guevara (Mexico)
10 Donnie Nietes (Philippines)
118lbs
♛ Vacant
1 Emmanuel Rodriguez (Puerto Rico)
2 Alexandro Santiago (Mexico)
3 Jason Moloney (Australia)
4 Vincent Astrolabio (Philippines)
5 Gary Antonio Russell (USA)
6 Takuma Inoue (Japan)
7 Nonito Donaire (Philippines)
8 Ryosuke Nishida (Japan)
9 Keita Kurihara (Japan)
10 Paul Butler (England)
122lbs
♛ Vacant
1 Naoya Inoue (Japan)
2 Marlon Tapales (Philippines)
3 Stephen Fulton (USA)
4 Luis Nery (Mexico)
5 Murodjon Akhmadaliev (Uzbekistan)
6 Sam Goodman (Australia)
7 Azat Hovhannisyan (Armenia)
8 Kevin Gonzalez (Mexico)
9 Ra’eese Aleem (USA)
10 Liam Davies (England)
126lbs
♛ Vacant
1 Luis Alberto Lopez (Mexico)
2 Leigh Wood (England)
3 Brandon Figueroa (USA)
4 Rey Vargas (Mexico)
5 Mauricio Lara (Mexico)
6 Robeisy Ramirez (Cuba)
7 Mark Magsayo (Philippines)
8 Josh Warrington (England)
9 Reiya Abe (Japan)
10 Otabek Kholmatov (Uzbekistan)
130lbs
♛ Vacant
1 Emanuel Navarrete (Mexico)
2 Joe Cordina (Wales)
3 Hector Garcia (Dominican Republic)
4 O’Shaquie Foster (USA)
5 Oscar Valdez (Mexico)
6 Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov (Tajikistan)
7 Otar Eranosyan (Georgia)
8 Lamont Roach (USA)
9 Eduardo Ramirez (Mexico)
10 Kenichi Ogawa (Japan)
135lbs
♛ Devin Haney (USA)
1 Gervonta Davis (USA)
2 Vasily Lomachenko (Ukraine)
3 Isaac Cruz (Mexico)
4 William Zepeda Segura (Mexico)
5 Frank Martin (USA)
6 Shakur Stevenson (USA)
7 Maxi Hughes (England)
8 George Kambosos Jr (Australia)
9 Keyshawn Davis (USA)
10 Raymond Muratalla (USA)
140lbs
♛ Teofimo Lopez (USA)
1 Regis Prograis (USA)
2 Jose Ramirez (USA)
3 Jack Catterall (England)*
4 Subriel Matias (Puerto Rico)*
5 Arnold Barboza Jr. (USA)*
6 Gary Antuanne Russell (USA)*
7 Richardson Hitchins (USA)*
8 Jose Zepeda (USA)*
9 Zhankosh Turarov (Kazakhstan*)
10 Elvis Rodriguez (Dominican Republic)*
147lbs
♛ Terence Crawford (USA)
1 Errol Spence (USA)
2 Jaron Ennis (USA)
3 David Avanesyan (Russia)
4 Cody Crowley (Canada)
5 Alexis Rocha (USA)
6 Rashidi Ellis (USA)
7 Souleymane Cissokho (Senegal)
8 Roiman Villa (Venezuela)
9 Egidijus Kavaliauskas (Lithuania)
10 Shakhram Giyasov (Uzbekistan)
154lbs
♛ Jermell Charlo (USA)
1 Tim Tszyu (Australia)
2 Brian Mendoza (USA)
3 Jesus Alejandro Ramos (USA)
4 Sebastian Fundora (USA)
5 Erickson Lubin (USA)
6 Michel Soro (Ivory Coast)
7 Magomed Kurbanov (Russia)
8 Tony Harrison (USA)
9 Israil Madrimov (Uzbekistan)
10 Bakhram Murtazaliev (Russia)
160lbs
♛ Vacant
1 Gennady Golovkin (Kazakhstan)
2 Carlos Adames (Dominican Republic)
3 Zhanibek Alimkhanuly (Kazakhstan)
4 Chris Eubank Jr. (England)
5 Liam Smith (England)
6 Sergiy Derevyanchenko (Ukraine)*
7 Vincenzo Gualtieri (Germany)
8 Felix Cash (England)
9 Michael Zerafa (Australia)
10 Esquiva Falcao (Brazil)
168lbs
♛ Canelo Alvarez (Mexico)
1 David Benavidez (USA)
2 Caleb Plant (USA)
3 Christian Mbilli (France)
4 David Morrell (Cuba)
5 John Ryder (England)
6 Pavel Silyagin (Russia)
7 Vladimir Shishkin (Russia)
8 Carlos Gongora (Ecuador)
9 Jaime Munguia (Mexico)
10 Demetrius Andrade (USA)
175lbs
♛ Artur Beterbiev (Canada)
1 Dmitry Bivol (Russia)
2 Joshua Buatsi (England)
3 Callum Smith (England)
4 Joe Smith Jr. (USA)
5 Gilberto Ramirez (Mexico)
6 Anthony Yarde (England)
7 Dan Azeez (England)
8 Ali Izmailov (Russia)
9 Michael Eifert (Germany)
10 Igor Mikhalkin (Germany)
200lbs
♛ Jai Opetaia (Australia)
1 Mairis Breidis (Latvia)
2 Chris Billam-Smith (England)
3 Richard Riakporhe (England)
4 Aleksei Papin (Russia)
5 Badou Jack (Sweden)
6 Arsen Goulamirian (France)
7 Lawrence Okolie (England)
8 Yuniel Dorticos (Cuba)
9 Mateusz Masternak (Poland)
10 Ilunga Makabu (So. Africa)
Unlimited
♛ Oleksandr Usyk (Ukraine)
1 Tyson Fury (England)
2 Zhilei Zhang (China)
3 Deontay Wilder (USA)
4 Anthony Joshua (England)
5 Filip Hrgovic (Croatia)
6 Arslanbek Makhmudov (Russia)*
7 Frank Sanchez (Cuba)*
8 Daniel Dubois (England)*
9 Dillian White (England)*
10 Derek Chisora (Zimbabwe)*
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Canelo-Charlo Gets All the Ink, but Don’t Overlook the Compelling Match-up of Gassiev-Wallin in Turkey

Canelo-Charlo Gets All the Ink, but Don’t Overlook the Compelling Match-up of Gassiev-Wallin in Turkey
The eyes of the boxing world will be on Las Vegas this Saturday where Mexican superstar Saul “Canelo” Alvarez risks his four super middleweight title belts against unified 154-pound champion Jermell Charlo. Earlier that day at a luxury resort hotel in the city of Antalya on the Mediterranean coast of Turkey, there’s a heavyweight match sitting under the radar that may prove to be the better fight. It’s an intriguing match-up between former world cruiserweight title-holder Murat Gassiev and Swedish southpaw Otto Wallin, a bout with significant ramifications for boxing’s glamour division.
Gassiev (30-1, 23 KOs) and Wallin (25-1, 14 KOs) have only one loss, but those setbacks came against the top dogs in the division. Gassiev was out-boxed by Oleksandr Usyk back in the days when both were cruiserweights. Wallin gave Tyson Fury a world of trouble before losing a unanimous decision.
Since those fights, both have been treading water.
Gassiev
Gassiev was inactive for 27 months after his match with Usyk while dealing with legal issues and an injury to his left shoulder. He is 4-0 (4 KOs) since returning to the ring while answering the bell for only eight rounds. The only recognizable name among those four victims is German gatekeeper Michael Wallisch. After stopping Wallisch, Gassiev was out of action for another 13 months while reportedly dealing with an arm injury.
A first-round knockout of Carlouse Welch, an obscure 40-something boxer from the U.S. state of Georgia on Aug. 26, 2022, in Belgrade, Serbia, was promoted as a title fight. The sanctioning body was the Eurasian Boxing Parliament (insert your own punchline here). Gassiev followed that up with a second-round knockout of former NFL linebacker Mike Balogun who came in undefeated and was seemingly a legitimate threat to him.
Although he has yet to fight a ranked opponent since leaving the cruiserweight division, Gassiev — a former stablemate of Gennady Golovkin who has been living in Big Bear, California, training under Abel Sanchez – is one of the most respected fighters in the division because he has one-punch knockout power as Balogun and others can well attest. The rub against the Russian-Armenian bruiser is that he is somewhat robotic.
Wallin
Otto Wallin, a 32-year-old southpaw from Sweden who trains in New York under former world lightweight champion Joey Gamache, fought Tyson Fury on Sept. 14, 2019 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. There was a general feeling that the Swede would be a stroll in the park for Fury, but to the contrary, he gave the Gypsy King a hard tussle while losing a unanimous decision.
Wallin is 5-0 since that night beginning with victories over Travis Kauffman (KO 5) and Dominic Breazeale (UD 12), but his last three opponents were softer than soft and all three lasted the distance. In order, Wallin won an 8-round decision over Kamil Sokolowski, who was 11-24-2 heading in, won a 10-round decision over ancient Rydell Booker, and won an 8-round decision over Helaman Olguin. His bout with Utah trial horse Olguin was at a banquet hall in Windham, New Hampshire.
It isn’t that Wallin has been avoiding the top names in the division; it’s the other way around. His promoter Dmitriy Salita reportedly came close to getting Wallin a match with Anthony Joshua whose team had second thoughts about sending Joshua in against another southpaw after back-to-back setbacks to Oleksandr Usyk.
Gassiev vs Wallin is a true crossroads fight. Both are in dire need of a win over a credible opponent. At last look, Gassiev, who figures to have the crowd in his corner, was a 3/1 favorite.
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