Inside look at Golovkin vs. Wade: What you need to know, expert pick
Gennady Golovkin is pushing hard to claim all of the world title belts at 160 pounds, but one man stands between him and a possible date with Canelo Alvarez: Dominic Wade.
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6 min read
It certainly wouldn’t be the first time.
In fact, modern boxing history is full of tales about fighters on the verge of career-defining matches who tripped over a last unheralded obstacle.
Playing the role of obstacle this Saturday is anonymous middleweight challenger Dominic Wade.
The role of champion determined not to become a cautionary footnote? Gennady Golovkin.
He’ll risk a burgeoning collection of 160-pound hardware while avoiding focus on the full-fledged weight-class unification that’s become his signature competitive quest.
Those closest to him, though, say tunnel vision is not a problem.
“It’s not hard to keep him motivated because he is a professional, a true professional, comes to the gym ready to work,” said Golovkin’s trainer, Abel Sanchez. “Right now the goal is to gain or to win all the four belts, the major belts, so hopefully this year that goal will be accomplished, and then we can worry about how we keep him motivated next year for the other goals that we have set for ourselves.”
Wade is a mandatory challenger for Golovkin’s IBF title, which he won from David Lemieux via eighth-round stoppage last October. Meanwhile, Golovkin also holds the IBO and WBA titles at 160 pounds, and is himself the mandatory challenger for the WBC crown – which will be up for grabs on May 7 when Canelo Alvarez defends against Amir Khan in Las Vegas.
The winner of that fight is obligated to fight him, or relinquish the championship.
Still, it’s no guarantee that Alvarez or Khan will choose Golovkin over other lucrative -- and less menacing options at other weights -- given Golovkin’s current streak of 21 straight Kos.
“We can’t speculate what other fighters are going to do,” Golovkin’s promoter, Tom Loeffler, told CBS Sports. “We have a clear mandate from the WBC. If Gennady is successful (Saturday) then he becomes the mandatory for (the winner of) the May 7 fight. Just like the IBF gave us the mandate to fight Wade, that is the same mandate that the WBC has for the winner.
“A fight with Canelo is clearly the biggest fight in the sport of boxing, so that is something we hope we can make. If they choose not to fight for whatever reason, they risk losing the title and it is one step closer that Gennady has to his goal of unifying the middleweight division.”
Englishman Billy Joe Saunders holds the WBO title belt and has at least suggested he’d be interested in a Golovkin showdown, while the WBA’s second-tier belt is owned by popular New Yorker Danny Jacobs.
The new WBO champion at 168 pounds, Gilberto Ramirez, also mentioned Golovkin’s name after his most recent victory on the Manny Pacquiao-Tim Bradley undercard earlier this month.
“That would certainly be a very marketable fight for Gennady as well at 168 pounds,” Loeffler said. “Unfortunately it’s a big difference between people mentioning Gennady’s name for marketing and for career and actually signing a contract, so that’s the biggest thing. When we announced the fight with Wade, Billy Joe Saunders called out Gennady, and when we announced the fight with Lemieux, Andre Ward runs his mouth after the announcements. So it is one thing to talk about fighting Gennady but it’s another thing to actually sign a contract and agree to take the fight.”
Toward that end, Wade has earned Team Golovkin’s respect.
He improved to 18-0 with a split 10-round decision over former world title claimant Sam Soliman last June, and then assumed the mandatory position when Tureano Johnson was rendered inactive by injury.
When presented with the opportunity for the title fight, he signed a deal within a week.
“No one is expecting what I got, or what I can do. Everybody’s kind of underestimating what I can do and how I perform. That night I can show it,” Wade said. “It kind of motivates me a little bit due to everybody’s just looking past you already. Nobody really gave me the chance, so everybody’s kind of looking past trying to see the Triple-G and Canelo fight, but you know you never know what happens in this fight. Maybe I’ll be the one to shut it all down.”
The main event tops a two-bout HBO “World Championship Boxing” card that goes live at 10 p.m. ET.
Preceding Golovkin and Wade on the broadcast are a 12-round title bout between 112-pounders Roman Gonzalez and McWilliams Arroyo.
Gonzalez, a 28-year-old Nicaraguan, is defending his WBC flyweight championship and his status as Ring Magazine’s first pound-for-pound kingpin since the retirement of longtime elitist Floyd Mayweather Jr. He’s 44-0 with 38 knockouts in an 11-year professional career.
Arroyo, who carried the Puerto Rican flag at the 2008 Summer Olympics though he was unable to compete due to injury, is 16-2 with 14 KOs as a pro. He was beaten by split decision in a bid for the IBF’s flyweight championship in September 2014.
Golovkin, as has been the case for many of his recent fights, is the definition of prohibitive favorite.
It'll take a $10,000 wager to return a mere $100 on him at VegasInsider.com, while a $100 outlay on Wade would return a tidy $1,600 for an upset. In the Gonzalez-Arroyo fight, the champion will require a $5,000 bet to make a $100 profit, while Arroyo would bring a $1,400 windfall for $100 if he wins.
| Tale of the Tape | ||
| Gennady Golovkin | Dominic Wade | |
| Record | 34-0-0, 31 KOs | 18-0-0, 12 KOs |
| Height | 5-foot-10 1/2 | 5-foot-10 1/2 |
| Weight | 160* | 160* |
| Stance | Orthodox | Orthodox |
| Hometown | Karaganda, Kazakhstan | Largo, Maryland |
| Age | 34 | 26 |
| Rounds | 154 | 60 |
*Note: Official weigh-ins on Friday
How does Golovkin win?
Golovkin has been the top-tier champion of one sanctioning body or another since 2011 and has ended each of his 13 title bouts by stoppage. So, come Saturday, following the same recipe would presumably yield the same results. He’s precise and methodical in his breakdown of foes, using sound footwork to get them to places they don’t want to be -- then bludgeoning them with power shots.
How does Wade win?
If he wakes up Sunday with a slew of 160-pound title belts on the nightstand, Wade will have validated a challenge few are taking seriously. But, that said, he does have some physical attributes going in. He’s got a four-plus-inch reach advantage on Golovkin along with quick hands and feet. By staying busy and staying mobile, he’ll look to frustrate and extend the champion in a way no one’s been able to.
Prediction: Golovkin by TKO in 5
With no career context in place, you might be tempted to look at a speedy, skilled boxer like Wade and say, 'OK, sure. He can give this guy some problems.' But given the challenger’s lack of high-profile opposition thus far -- and Golovkin’s track record of chewing up and spitting out wannabes with far more street cred -- it’s simply hard to envision more than fleeting moments of success for Wade. The incremental punishment he sustains from round to round will take its toll before the halfway mark.
CBSSports.com will have live coverage of Golovkin vs. Wade on Saturday, April 23. Come back for full fight results and analysis.
