Hagler-Hearns II? (Golovkin-Brook Preview)
By Ralph Rimpell
PhilBoxing.com
Sat, 10 Sep 2016
It?s been 31 years since the boxing world saw what was described as the ?three most brutal rounds in middleweight history? when former welterweight champion and then junior middleweight champion Thomas ?Hitman? Hearns went up in weight and challenged Marvelous Marvin Hagler for undisputed middleweight supremacy at Cesar Palace back in 1985.
In a non-stop action toe to toe fight, Hagler would go on to score a brutal knockout of Hearns in the 3rd round but not before Hagler himself was stunned and possibly could have himself been knocked out if he did not tie Hearns up to regain his bearings. Hagler later recounted, ?Tommy had a good right hand?. There was a lot of trash talk between the two camps and apparent bad blood leading into the fight partly because Hearns not fighting Hagler despite being offered a reported 2 million dollars citing a ?pinky injury?.
The boxing world would have paid to see a rematch. Hagler refused to grant Hearns a rematch. Let?s hope tonight?s fight picks up were Hagler-Hearns left off. With Gennady ?Easy Work? Golovkin (35-0, 32 KOs) and Kell Brook (36-0, 26KOs), there is no apparent ?bad blood?, and there appears to be mutual respect between the fighters due to Golovkin?s accomplishments and dominance and Brook for taking the fight and ?talking the talk? on how he has hurt heavyweights (201Lbs and above) in sparring, he will be healthier at middleweight (160lbs), and how he will shock the world by beating Golovkin, etc.
This is a ?superfight? not happening on US soil. The Boxing world is closely watching to see if Brook can do what Hearns couldn?t do to Hagler when he hurt and stunned him in their epic fight 31 years ago. Interesting new developments have come out of the UK that merit mentioning.
The first is that Brook has admitted to having ?fear? going into this fight. I think Las Vegas odds will change dramatically if this admission is taken seriously. Remember Brook speaks British English, not American English. So was it the context in which he said he had ?fear? negated if we presume he was speaking British English? I mean did he really convey he has scared, like he doesn?t want to fight cause he knows he can?t win and will get a beating, or did he mean he is scared like he has ?butterflies in his stomach? (nervous), which would be normal considering the magnitude of this fight, or we can take it a step further and presume he is horrified (scared shit) like Michael Spinks before he fought Mike Tyson and got knocked out in 1:31 seconds of the first round in 1988? We will know if and when the fight makes it to the second round. The Second is there are reports Golovkin is ?under the weather? (sick), which may mean he is not 100%. The Golovkin camp has denied this. These two factors regarding both fighters, if true, can or may play an important factor in who gets the ?W? tonight. What are the keys to victory for Golovkin the man known as ?Triple GGG??
Golovkin no doubt will be in hostile territory, Brook?s hometown and country. He must tune the noise of the Pro-Brook fans out and focus on his game plan and execute it which no doubt is to apply constant pressure to Brook, use good defense, cut the ring off, and wear brook down with body shots to stop him by the 7th round. What must Brook do to pull off the upset?
Brook has to first believe what he has been selling to the public. That he is 100% at middleweight, he is capable of hurting a Heavyweight, and he will win. Brook has to do what 35 other fighters failed to do, which is back up Triple G and put him on the defense. That will be key. He must use good movement, but fight when he has to as well and not run the entire bout. He must earn Golovkin?s respect within the first 30 seconds by summoning the power that has reportedly hurt heavyweights in his gym with. If Brook can execute these three things perfectly, even if he does not KO Golovkin he will likely earn a decision and shock the world. If he truly is scared and it?s not normal nerves, he will choke and get knocked out within three rounds. This writer picks Brook by close split decision victory.
Contact Writer: RLuvsboxing@aol.com
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Ralph Rimpell.
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