HBO PPV Fight Preview (Main Event)

Gennady Golovkin vs. Daniel Jacobs

This Saturday on HBO pay-per-view in arguably the toughest fight of his career, Gennady Golovkin will defend his WBA, WBC, and IBF middleweight titles.  The reason this fight could be one of the toughest of his career is because he is set to take on Daniel Jacobs whose mixture of power and boxing skills could potentially push Golovkin further than he has ever had to go before.  It won't just be Golovkin's belts on the line though, the winner of this fight could rightfully claim themselves as the best middleweight in boxing.

GGG landing a heavy jab on Brook

To say that Golovkin has power would be a massive understatement.  The last time Golovkin didn't knock an opponent out was in 2008 and the Kazakh fighter, who works out of the orthodox stance, is definitely one of the most dangerous punchers in the sport.  It all starts behind a powerful jab that lands like other fighter's power punches.  "GGG" can hurt opponents with his strong right hand but his best weapon is his left hook.  However, unlike other power punchers who rely on landing their best weapon, Golovkin mixes up his attack well and will throw uppercuts to the head along with attacking the body.  One reason he is so successful at hurting opponents is because he cuts off the ring so well and doesn't let them escape his attack.  The only real knock against "GGG" is that he has been hit cleanly a lot in recent fights.  He insists that he lets opponents touch him up once he knows their punches can't hurt him to give the fans a good show but how true that is remains to be seen.

Since his rise to prominence it has often been difficult for Golovkin to find other top tier opponents willing to step in the ring with him.  However, he has always been willing to fight all comers at 160 pounds and usually they don't last very long.  His career record is a perfect 36-0 and he has an incredible 33 knockouts in those fights.  Since his last fight to go the distance in 2008, Golovkin has recorded 23 knockouts in a row and fighters like Kell Brook, David Lemieux, Martin Murray, and Daniel Geale are among his victims.  The best fighter on his list of victims is probably Brook but he moved up in weight to take on Golovkin, so Jacobs, a true middleweight with plenty of power of his own probably has the best chance at pulling off the upset.  

Jacob's landing a stiff jab to Mora's body

Jacobs is also an orthodox fighter and he too carries plenty of power with him into the ring.  Jacobs is dangerous because he has power in both hands and works behind a stiff jab.  He has a very good left hook but he also has a right hand that does plenty of damage, just ask Peter Quillin.  Jacobs throws a straight right hand from the outside but when he gets in closer he throws a chopping overhand right that can do serious damage.  The chin of Jacobs is a question mark though, he was knocked out badly by Dmitry Pirog back in 2010 and was also dropped by light hitting Sergio Mora in 2015.  At times when he goes on the attack Jacobs doesn't protect his chin well enough and if he does that against Golovkin he will pay the price.

In 2009 Jacobs was being hailed as one of, if not the best prospect in all of boxing.  A year later, fighting for a vacant title he was starched by Pirog but things really got bad a year after that when Jacobs was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer.  The Brooklyn native was told there was a good chance he'd die, he was also told even if he lived he may never walk again and he would certainly never fight again.  It took him just 17 months to prove everyone wrong by getting back in the ring and he hasn't lost a fight since 2010 and his career record is now 32-1 with a very impressive 29 knockouts.  His best win to date was a first round knockout of Peter Qullin in late 2015 and against Golovkin he will have the chance to become the best middleweight in the sport.

What makes this fight so tantalizing is the fact that both Golovkin and Jacobs are two of the biggest punchers not just in the middleweight division but in all of boxing.  However, they aren't just heavy hitting brawlers, both also have a high level of boxing skills.  While Golovkin has already established himself as a top 10 pound-for-pound fighter, ranked fifth by Big Time Boxing, a win would could move Jacobs onto that list and would really take his career to new heights.  Look for both fighters to establish the jab and test the other's chin early in an attempt to see what they can stand up to.  If Jacobs can withstand the power of Golovkin he has the power and skills to really test him and even pull off the upset.  Also, the power of Jacobs should finally tell fans just how good Golovkin's chin is. 

PREDICTION: Look for Gennady Golovkin to fight safely to start this fight, much like he did against power puncher David Lemieux.  How long this fight lasts though will depend on whether or not Daniel Jacobs goes into survival mode.  If Jacobs doesn't like the taste of Golovkin's power and goes defensive he will survive until the late rounds.  However, if he chooses to trade punches with Golovkin things could end earlier.  This fight should be even at the start but in the middle rounds Golovkin will start to land his power and Jacobs will go defensive long enough to make it to the ninth round before being stopped by Golovkin.