Long before his record-setting middleweight title supremacy before his lengthy hiatus, Gennady Golovkin was threatened with the first loss of his gleaming career.
A decorated middleweight kingpin, Gennady Golovkin holds the record for the most successful title defenses in the division, putting his belts on the line 21 times and defending them as many times, too.
And setting up his first of three memorable pairings with former undisputed super middleweight kingpin Canelo Alvarez, Golovkin was almost pushed to his limit by a certain British star.
Eventually weathering an early and sustained storm, Golovkin inflicted a ghastly in-fight injury en route to a big win.
Making just one single trip to the United Kingdom during his illustrious career, Kazakh star Golovkin would take on the charge of Sheffield puncher Kell Brook, putting his WBC, IBF, and IBO middleweight crowns on the line.
Boasting a spectacular 35-0 professional record at the time of his fight with Brook in a trip to London, Olympic silver medal winner Golovkin had already defended titles opposite the likes of Dominic Wade as well as David Lemieux.
But forced to the fifth round in a back-and-forth clash with Brook, Golovkin would find himself down on a judge’s scorecard — with the other cards having the bout tied at 38-38.
! Kell Brook v GGG
— Sky Sports Boxing (@SkySportsBoxing) September 10, 2023
In 2016, Kell Brook showed tremendous courage when he faced Gennady Golovkin at the O2 Arena.pic.twitter.com/W9o5yyGWDv
His active self in the ring with a string of lengthy combinations and constant pressure, Golovkin would shatter Brook’s eye socket in the bout, forcing an eventual stoppage in the fifth, with Dominic Ingle throwing the towel into the ring.
On the back of his win against Brook, Golovkin would beat the resurging Daniel Jacobs, before fighting the above-mentioned Canelo thrice ahead of his lengthy hiatus.
Making his most recent walk to the ring back three years ago, Golovkin would suffer a unanimous decision defeat to Canelo, whom he had pushed to his limit in their prior pair of clashes, finding himself unfortunate to lose in their rematch in particular.
But amid links to a potential comeback, Golovkin, now aged 43, has claimed he is feeling the “emotions” of fighting once more following a recent appearance at the World Boxing Championships in the UK.
Furthermore, the Kazakhstan megastar teased an opponent for a return to the ring in a rather cryptic revelation.
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