After dismantling another opponent on July 26, this time is was his most decorated opponent yet, former two-time champion Daniel Geale, boxing observers want to see Gennady "GGG" Golovkin against elite competition. Before signing on to face Geale, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. seemed like he would be the man until negotiations fell apart.
By dominating Geale so thoroughly, Golovkin appears able to topple anyone from 154 lbs. to 168 lbs.-the upper echelon of that range being dominated by Andre Ward. Ward is regarded by most as the No. 2 pound-for-pound fighter in the world behind Floyd Mayweather Jr., and recently addressed his name constantly appearing in rumors about Golovkin.
"My thing was just simply don't bring my name up constantly if you don't want to fight," Ward told BoxingScene.com. "I'm no bully. I'm not chasing no 160 pounders or 154 pounders. When I keep hearing my name come up and I'm out and about and fans are asking me about it I put the pressure on Golovkin's team. I said man listen, either step up or stop bringing my name up."
While Ward is a gifted fighter, he has failed to become a star on the level of a Floyd Mayweather. Part of that has been due to inactivity; the last time fight fans were treated to a Ward fight was November 2013 when he easily defeated Edwin Rodriguez by unanimous decision.
Ward has beaten plenty of quality fighters, but Golovkin and his growing following would make for arguably the biggest fight of Ward's career. Golovkin's promoter Tom Loeffler doesn't believe a Ward fight makes financial sense though when accounting for the risk Golovkin assumes by moving up to super middleweight.
Ward addressed Loeffler's comments as well.
"I think they made a mistake by that move they made," Ward said. "They miscalculated and when Chavez pulled out and didn't want to fight or whatever the situation was they didn't look good.
"My thing with Golovkin is I have nothing against Golovkin. I actually like Golovkin. I like his approach to the game. He's humble and the kid can go. I've never disputed his skill set. He's a silver medalist. He has heavy hands and he's a good fighter. We don't know how good he is. We don't know good any of us are until you fight the best."
Ward continued on to chastise Golovkin's team for talking too much and then not backing up their claims. "It's the people around him that like to talk and have the smoke and mirrors.
"That's the stuff that with me, I'm cut and dry. My thing is if there's something there and we're going to fight then let's fight, and if not just be honest with the fans. And they clarified that so I'm good. I'm moving on. He said he's cleaning out 160 so I wish him all the best."
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