On June 7, 2014 Miguel Cotto, dethroned WBC middleweight champion Sergio Martinez while only weighing 155 for the 160 title. He would make but one defense a year later on June 6, 2015 stopping Daniel Geale.
On October 18, 2014 Gennady “GGG” Golovkin, 37-0 (33), of KAZ/L.A. knocked out Marco Rubio in 2 rounds for the WBC interim middleweight title. Golovkin would make 5 defenses of his interim title.
On November 21, 2015, Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, 49-1-1 (34), at 155 and Miguel Cotto, 40-4, at 153 1/2 by decision in 12. On May 7, 2016 he made one defense of this title knocking out WBC No. 1 welterweight contender Amir Kahn with both weighing 155. Not wanting to unify the interim and world titles Alvarez vacated the WBC middleweight title.
On September 10, 2016 Golovkin having been “awarded” the WBC middleweight title that Alvarez vacated made a defense stopping IBF welterweight champion Kell Brook, 36-0, in the UK. This was to be the date of the Golovkin-Alvarez fight. The people representing Alvarez pushed it back to September 17, 2017, a year. Instead Alvarez defended the WBO Super welterweight title knocking out Liam Smith on the same date, in Texas, with Alvarez at 154.
On March 18, 2017 Golovkin defeated the WBC interim champion Danny Jacobs scoring a knockdown winning a close fight. Golovkin weighed in at 170 the day of the fight in the second weigh-in while Jacobs refused to be weighed in (gave up fighting for the IBF title). Since there is a 10 pound limit one can weigh over the other Jacobs had to come in over 180. The plans for Golovkin next were to defend his title in June in KAZ. With Jacobs fighting the entire fight southpaw the WBO middleweight champion Billy Joe Saunders, a southpaw, finally agreed to unify the titles giving Golovkin the opportunity to hold all 4 organizations titles. On May 6, 2017 for the first time in the career of Alvarez he came in over 155 at 164 shutting out Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr., over 12 rounds. With the win for Alvarez, now the WBO super welterweight champion, his people decided to agree to fight Golovkin in September 2017. After the Chavez fight Alvarez was asked if he was “ducking” Golovkin and he said “no!” Since Golovkin had such a tough battle with Jacobs his people did not want to come back 3 months later to fight Saunders and with a victory 3 months after that fight Alvarez. So they passed on the Saunders fight for now.
As you can see not only did the Alvarez people pass on fighting Golovkin in September of 2016 they vacated the WBC title. No matter what Golovkin does it seems he can never please most of the boxing public. He’s made 17 title defenses, and had his 23 straight knockout streak stopped in his last fight. He’s won the IBF, WBA and WBC titles and was a Silver Medalist in the 2004 Olympic Games. The naysayers say “he hasn’t fought anyone” even though Floyd “Money” Mayweather, Jr., declined to fight him in his final bout. Let’s give cedit where credit is do! This writer feels between Golovkin and Vasyl “Hi-Tech” Lomachenko, the WBO World Super featherweight champion they are No. 1 and No. 2 P4P in the world with you taking your pick!