Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez has been angered by Gennady Golovkin, and will seek to bring an end to their rivalry with a sensational knockout in their September rematch, according to Alvarez’s promoter Oscar De La Hoya.
Despite controversial judging in Alvarez’s favour blighting the first fight, De La Hoya stated that he believes Canelo-Golovkin I was one of the “best fights we’ve seen in recent years”.
“Well, I’ll tell you that the Canelo-Triple-G fight was probably one of the best fights that we’ve seen in recent years.” De La Hoya told Yahoo! Sports’ Kevin Iole.
However, De La Hoya would go on to reveal that the recent fall-out following the cancellation of their initial May rematch has infuriated Alvarez, with the Mexican superstar looking to bring en emphatic conclusion to his rivalry with Golovkin on September 15th in Las Vegas.
“You know, obviously the second time around is gonna be different. Canelo is gonna stand his ground, push him back and try to knock him out.” stated De La Hoya.
After an initial May rematch between the pair was cancelled due to ‘Canelo’ testing positive for the banned substance clenbuterol, De La Hoya claimed that Golovkin’s public condemnation of Alvarez has angered his fighter – and he intends to inflict a damaging knockout defeat on the unbeaten middleweight kingpin.
“I’m telling you, Canelo is right now just so angry at what’s been taking place – he’s angry at Golovkin.” De La Hoya said.
“He’s angry at Golovkin. There’s real animosity. This reminds me of me and Vargas. It’s gonna be a really intense fight. Look, if Canelo moves a little and doesn’t wanna get hit, then so be it. That’s what boxing is, I guess, right?
Alvarez, the darling of Mexico’s enormous boxing fanbase, faced criticism from large sections of his supporters for “running: from Golovkin in their first encounter.
De La Hoya, however, insisted that ‘Canelo’ intends to stand and trade with the fearsome Kazakh KO artist in the return leg – a move that will surely make for a sensational spectacle between the pair.
“I think Canelo fought a smart fight.” De La Hoya said.
“But you know the Mexican fans. They want your guy to stand toe-to-toe, a la Julio Cesar Chavez. But let me tell you one thing – Golovkin woke up the sleeping giant.”
With the bad blood between the pair resulting in cancellations of all customary face-off promotions and head-to-heads, De La Hoya would finish by stating that he believes his man would not only become the first man to defeat Golovkin – but that he would leave the result in no doubt by scoring a stunning knockout victory.
“This time around, Canelo is gonna stand his ground and fight him, and I believe we’re gonna see a knockout this time.”