WBA Dates Gennady Golovkin vs Erislandy Lara Purses Bids for March 13
The WBA has ruled that the ordered matchup between WBA middleweight Super Champion Gennady “GGG” Golovkin (42-2-1, 37 KOs and WBA Regular champion Erislandy “The American Dream” Lara (29-3-3, 17 KOs) will now go to a purse bid hearing. The bid will occur on March 13 at the WBA offices in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Golovkin – Lara was first ordered by the WBA on September 23, 2022. A second order was handed down by the sanctioning body in February 2023.
A multiple-time champion at 160, GGG has been out of action since a unanimous decision loss to the reigning super middleweight champion, Canelo Alvarez, on September 17, 2022. Lara previously was a world champion at junior middleweight. He captured the WBA Regular middleweight strap with a first-round knockout over Thomas LaManna in May 2021. The American Dream has not fought since an eighth-round stoppage over Gary O’Sullivan in May 2022.
QUESTIONS REMAIN
On paper, a fight between Golovkin and Lara would be an excellent matchup. You would have GGG’s attacking “Mexican Style” versus the slick boxing skills of the Cuban-born and raised Lara. But there are still lingering issues.
No one knows what Golovkin is going to do. He’s been out of the limelight since the trilogy bout against Alvarez. GGG vacated the IBF middleweight crown in February 2023, and there’s not been a peep from his camp as far as his future plans.
Conversely, word on the street is that Lara is in talks to face two-division champion Danny “Swift” Garcia later this year. Despite the multiple orders and this scheduled purse bid, there continues to be a question if fans will get to see this fight. The situation is far from resolved.
