GGG has been number one for at least 2 years, and now Cotto has hinted that he will give up the WBC belt if they try to force the GGG fight. This is likely because Cotto sees dollar signs with Canelo, as well as an opponent he actually has a chance of beating.
This means we will probably not see GGG against any stars until 2016... but regarding of all the top fighters in an around him who have been mentioned as opponents, let's break down the odds of it happening, and the prognosis if it did. In round 1 of this analysis, I told of the least likely candidates. Now, let's look at the 2 big dogs that are most likely to face Golovkin. They are still ranked from least likely to most likely opponents:
Andre Ward - Ward is perhaps the only fighter on earth that the experts are picking to defeat GGG. This is largely because of the dominance Ward showed years ago over bigger stronger fighters, many of whom have since gone on to success. We have yet to see how much of that skill-set is left after more than 18 months off. If Ward still has it, he may be the one left to test the young Kazakh bomber.
SOG has been dropped by spoiler Darnell Boone, but it seems to take more than one shot to get rid of Ward, and he is rarely caught with more than one at a time, or even one. If he uses his intelligence and speed, he may be the first to really frustrate Golovkin, and win a decision. However, if Ward moves up to 175 before GGG is done at middleweight, we may never see it, so this match is not a sure thing.
Saul Canelo Alvarez - It is no guarantee that Canelo will even fully move up to 160. His last fight was at 155lbs, so he may stay at Junior Middle. It is also not a guarantee that Cotto will fight him, or that the Mexican superstar would win if he did. It is also not certain that Alvarez will face GGG next year. However, the odds are actually in favor of all 3 steps in that scenario, so we are most likely to see this match-up than any other. Canelo has already shown the willingness to take on the tough assignments, even when there is a lot more to lose than gain.
With Trout, Floyd, and Lara, however, his drawing power survived the dull fights. With GGG, not only would he make millions, he would do so with an exciting fight. His iron chin means he is less likely to be embarrassed, but even his connections cannot overcome the deficit in scoring that GGG will likely attain. We probably will not see it until next year, and maybe not until late in the year, but we should see it, and GGG will win a decision that will snap his KO streak.
GGG POSSIBILITIES PART 1
Chris Strait
www.convictedartist.com