Gennady Golovkin talks Abel Sanchez!
Having entered into the twilight of his career, Gennady “GGG” Golovkin (38-1-1, 34 KO’s) is looking to end his journey in spectacular fashion. To do so, he felt it necessary to make some drastic changes in his team.
The biggest alteration was the firing of his longtime head coach Abel Sanchez. The two enjoyed a long, successful partnership that saw GGG collect the IBF, WBA, WBC and IBO middleweight titles.
In the end, it appears that due to a dispute over finances, Golovkin opted to go his separate way.
While paired with Sanchez, GGG benefited from a substantial marketing campaign to bolster his reputation and notoriety.
Team Golovkin cleverly coined the term “Mexican Style” to further endear the Kazakhstan fighter to the American public. Now coached by Jonathon Banks, GGG has publicly rejected Sanchez, as well as the fact that the veteran trainer embodies what “Mexican Style” is.
This come across as both odd and petty.
A Poor Choice of Words
It rings petty because the Kazakh fighter is neither Mexican, nor does he reside in Mexico. This did not stop him from saying that Sanchez, who is Mexican, does not embody “Mexican Style” because he’s lived in California all his life.
The statement is odd because, aside from never living in Mexico himself, Golovkin has been criticized for essentially abandoning his beloved “Mexican Style” whenever combating higher tier competition.
This was the case when he fought against David Lemuiex, Daniel Jacobs and Saul “Canelo” Alvarez.
There is also a large body of folks who take issue with the term from a racial standpoint. This group questions what the terms intended definition is in the first place.
Most believe that it refers to a “head down, plow forward no matter what” style of fighting that harnesses little ring intelligence.
Yet, this hollow definition hardly defines boxers such as Marco Antonio Barrera, Juan Manuel Marquez, Oscar De La Hoya, Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, Miguel Vasquez or the newly crowned heavyweight champion Andy Ruiz Jr, to name a few.
All of these fighters are actually Mexican. Are we to believe that GGG is a more suitable example of how Mexicans fight than the above mentioned pugilists?
In the end, the recent needless jab at Abel Sanchez was a poorly thought-out decision. Up next, Golovkin will face the radically unknown Steve Rolls on a DAZN card at Madison Square Garden.
The June 8 dust-up has received very little attention from fans or the media.
By: Bakari Simpson
