Bernard Hopkins has talked about the upcoming Golovkin-Monroe fight with Jim Lampley at The Fight Game.
Bernard Hopkins has talked about the upcoming Golovkin-Monroe fight with Jim Lampley at The Fight Game.
Hopkins said that despite Willie Monroe Jr boxing abilities he was no match for unstoppable Gennady Golovkin, the WBA Super, IBO and WBC Interim middleweight champion from Kazakhstan.
“(Monroe) can box, he has little bit of pedigree from (his uncle) Monroe and Philadelphia. Yes, he has the boxing abilities. But when you are in the ring with Triple G, that’s a big order. Triple G will stalk you, assault you and it is over. (…) I want to see action and there will be action early on. But I think Triple G, right now, is on the top of his game and very aggressive. I think there will be stoppage somewhere in the fight,” Hopkins said.
Lampley asked Hopkins if Golovkin’s 90% KO ratio was affecting the fighter.
“He got over 80% knockout ratio in the middleweight division. That's a record he continually keeps setting. I think it is in his mind every time he steps in the ring. It is not good for his opponents, because they might not want to get knocked out. They might just want to lose (…). But he is looking for a knockout. And that’s what makes him special,” Hopkins responded.
Golovkin’s admirable persistence in the ring, according to Hopkins, makes the undefeated boxer special.
“He stalks his opponents like prey and executes. When you have that discipline to (stalk your opponent) round after round and you are not satisfied until you get your guy on the canvas, knocked out that is something special that you don’t see in boxing today,” Hopkins said.
Gennady Golovkin will defend his WBA Super, WBC Interim and IBO middleweight titles against Willie Monroe Jr on May 16 at The Forum in Inglewood.
By Gyuzel Kamalova