He won a clear unanimous decision to defend his undisputed super middleweight championship at the T Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Mexico’s Alvarez and Kazakhstan’s Golovkin share a storied history. They had two excellent middleweight title fights in 2017 and 2018. But their first match ended in a bitterly contested draw. Their second fight was delayed when Alvarez received a six-month suspension for an adverse drug test, which he blamed on eating contaminated meat. The Mexican did win that second bout by a narrow majority decision, but he never quite got the better of Golovkin. But he did it on Saturday in their third and certainly final match. Image: Alvarez holds Golovkin on the back foot (Photo: AP Photo/John Locher) Golovkin had moved up to 168 pounds to challenge Alvarez for the WBC, WBO, WBA and IBF super middleweight titles he now holds. But, at 40 years old, the Kazakh could not match the dynamism and hand speed of his great rival. In the opening round, both battled within, trying to pick the other off with a solid left lead. It was Alvarez, however, getting on the front foot, holding the center of the ring and forcing Golovkin back. Abandoning the ground meant Golovkin couldn’t escape the powerful punches on which his fearsome reputation is based. Instead, Alvarez was working away, picking up round after round as he quickly fired lefts to the head and threw his right through the openings. Those quick, well-placed shots marked Golovkin and made him uncharacteristically reluctant to let his hands go. After mostly targeting the head in the first half of the fight, Alvarez began to vary his level of offense as the fight progressed, landing the occasional left hook to the body. These shots came less often than expected, but when they did land, they landed with such force that Golovkin clearly felt their weight and was forced to retreat once again. As the fight entered its final stages, Alvarez had built a nearly unassailable lead. He found answers when Golovkin caught him, landing quality combinations and landing the odd spectacular right uppercut to the Kazakh’s jaw. With time running out of the fight and opportunity slipping away from him, Golovkin applied more pressure in the 11th round, finally getting busy behind his repeated jabs and hard hooks. But it was too little too late. At this stage the challenger needed a knockout to win and that never looked likely to happen. Image: Alvarez picks up Golovkin with a solid right as he defends his undisputed super middleweight crown (AP Photo/John Locher) Final scores were 116-112 and 115-113 twice, all for Alvarez. Their rivalry has finally come to an end. “He’s strong, he’s a great fighter,” said the Mexican. “For me, I’m just happy to share the ring with him. We’re giving the fans three really good fights. I’m happy to be in this kind of fight.” Golovkin replied: “I want to shake hands with Canelo and congratulate his whole team.” After the singular violence of their first two matches, the third ended peacefully. Even at 40, Golovkin has no plans to retire. “Absolutely [I’ll carry on]. I have a big plan, many opponents,” he said and added: “I’ll be back, I’m still champion.” Alvarez was coming into this fight off a loss. A foray up to light heavyweight in May had ended with Russian 175lb WBA titlist Dmitry Bivol showing him off. The Mexican wants this rematch after recovering from a “very bad” injury to his left hand. “I have to get my arm and body back and come back stronger than ever,” he said. On avenging that loss to Bivol, Alvarez insisted: “It’s very important for me, for my legacy, for my country, for everyone. “I’ve been through some very difficult things in my life,” he added. “I’ve really shown that defeats are big because they give you the opportunity to come back and show humility. “I will carry on to preserve my legacy.” This third Alvarez-Golovkin clash did not match the excitement or intensity of their first two fights. But there could be no disputing the result this time. For Canelo Alvarez to make this victory sweeter.
