NEW YORK ? Gennady Golovkin didn?t hesitate early Sunday morning when asked about the opponent he most wants to fight. ?I want Sergio Martinez,? Golovkin said following his technical knockout victory over Curtis Stevens on Saturday night in The Theater at Madison Square Garden. ?That?s the big fight for me.? Golovkin?s answer has remained the same since the knockout artist from Kazakhstan started destroying B-level opposition on HBO last year. Unfortunately for the unbeaten Golovkin and fight fans that want to see him meet more formidable foes, he?ll have to continue waiting for an opportunity to challenge Sergio Martinez to determine boxing?s best middleweight. Argentina?s Martinez (51-2-2, 28 KOs) seems headed toward a pay-per-view fight against Puerto Rican star Miguel Cotto (38-4, 31 KOs) sometime in the first half of 2014. That?s a smarter financial move for Martinez, who?s 38 and suffered hand and knee injuries during his last fight, an unimpressive unanimous-decision win against England?s Martin Murray (25-1-1, 11 KOs) on April 27 in Buenos Aires. Golovkin?s handlers are hopeful, however, that Martinez can beat Cotto and make a fight against Golovkin even more marketable. ?We?ve spoken to [Martinez?s representatives] and it looks like they?re going to try to do the Cotto fight first,? said Tom Loeffler, managing director for K2 Promotions, which represents Golovkin (28-0, 25 KOs). ?I don?t know if that?s going to happen, but we definitely think a [Golovkin-Martinez] fight could happen in 2014.? Golovkin?s vicious body assault, persistent pressure and granite chin enabled him to stop a courageous Stevens (25-4, 18 KOs) following eight mostly one-sided rounds Saturday night. While Stevens certainly looked as if he had been through a brutal battle, Golovkin (28-0, 25 KOs) walked away from the fight unscathed, which will allow him to return to the ring relatively quickly. Loeffler said Golovkin will face an undetermined opponent Feb. 1 in Monte Carlo, where Golovkin knocked out Japan?s Nobuhiro Ishida (25-9-2, 10 KOs) in the third round March 30. That win was the second of four for Golovkin in 2013. The WBA middleweight champion plans to remain unusually active in 2014, especially for a rising star who?s been backed by deep-pocketed HBO Sports. ?We want to keep him active if another champion is not going to get in the ring with him,? Loeffler said. ?We want to keep him busy. And then, when the bigger fight comes, we?ll definitely jump on the big fight.?
Abel Sanchez, Golovkin?s trainer, would love for that big fight to come against Martinez. He?s just not confident that it will.
?I think the furthest thing from Sergio?s mind is Golovkin,? Sanchez said. ?Golovkin is a 160-pounder and I think Sergio now, at this stage of his career, with his age and his body breaking down, he?s looking for a smaller guy. And I think Cotto-Martinez is a great fight for the boxing public. So I don?t envision our name being mentioned again in regard to Martinez.?
HEAVYWEIGHT HURTING: According to published reports, Russian heavyweight Magomed Abdusalamov was placed in a medically induced coma Sunday following surgery at New York?s Roosevelt Hospital to remove a blood clot caused by a damaging beating against Mike Perez on the undercard. He was listed in stable condition Sunday night.
Abdusalamov, 32, initially was released from the hospital early Sunday morning, but returned because his head hurt. He wasn?t knocked down, but Abdusalamov (18-1, 18 KOs) also suffered a broken nose and a fractured hand during a one-sided, 10-round unanimous-decision defeat to Perez (20-0, 12 KOs) in a bout broadcast by HBO.
