With Gennady Golovkin set to take on Sergey Derevyanchenko for the IBF title on October 5th, Golovkin sits down with our friends at Fight Hub TV to discuss the bout and why he doesn’t care if he never gets another shot at Canelo Alvarez. Check out some excerpts below...
Golovkin on if he still feels like he’s a world champion, despite being a challenger for the vacant IBF title:
“Anytime. Of course. You know, just, I had good experience, you know, my life experience, my boxing experience. I feel very comfortable and I just feel like — I’m feeling different level. Not just belts, not just for this, I just feel [like I’m in a] different situation, different position, different level.”
On if he remembers Derevyanchenko from the amateurs:
“I remember him, yes. He represent Ukraine national team...I saw a couple fights from amateur, yeah, I remember him long time ago. Just he’s so good. He’s so good...I think it’s so interesting fight for us and very good test for us.”
On being in his second full training camp with Jonathan Banks and what he thinks he’s improved:
“I have completely different idea, completely different road, you know, like boxing IQ. I show you, you know, in October 5th — I’m not changed 100% because, you know, this impossible for two, three months and you change completely. [Banks] bring a lot of ideas. We work hard everyday, just, just so interesting and I feel right now it’s much better. Yeah.
“I like more excited for more boxing, for speed, for timing, for combinations...you know, right now I feel like a mix, my style, a lot of mixes. It’s more better for me.”
On if he wants to fight more in a boxer-puncher style than a seek-and-destroy style now:
“Exactly. Sometimes, you know, it’s just so easy for you to come for one punch and ‘Boom!’. Like, if you know how ‘Boom!’, that’s it.
“Just sometimes if you want to real show your fans your boxing stuff, of course you try this, you know. Right now we have like a mix. I know how [‘Boom!], if he give me a chance, of course I do. I beat him.”
On if he was surprised Canelo decided to move up to fight Sergey Kovalev instead of taking a third fight against him:
“Not big surprises for me. Surprise like, you know, we have deal with DAZN for September 14th, like Independence Mexican Day, he said ‘no, no’ — this is surprise. You know, nobody understand why.
“Of course he wanna fight with Kovalev, he talk with him like...Okay, this is deal with him and Sergey Kovalev, you know, it’s his business deal. I don’t want to touch this deal, you know. I remember just we had a business for September 14, he said ‘no,’ okay, it’s finished. I just forgot him...”
On how he reconciles having unfinished business with Canelo knowing a lot of fans believe he really beat him:
“I feel very comfortable. I told you, like, I had good experience from last couple years. I know who is this guy, I know who is his promotion — just look right now, just every time bad, you know, every time bad situation right now. I just don’t want touch this bad, you know, like dirty situation. I don’t want because this not my stuff and this is not my side, you know. It’s his side. I don’t want touching this.
“I not understand who support this guy, you know. He’s so horrible for boxing, for business, for everything.”
On if he’s okay if he never gets a chance to fight Canelo again:
“You know, my point, just I told you — I have experience now, I have partner relationship with DAZN, you know. It’s better for me, of course, it’s better for me if I have a fight. If he not coming like last time, it’s no problem. Just I have a lot of names. I have beautiful guys, you know, great champions. I have a lot of options right now. I have good position, I work with great people from boxing, from Matchroom, Eddie Hearn, you know, like collaborations. We have good view for future. Why not? I have a lot of ideas for future.
“[Canelo] show his face, like he talked very bad [about] his promoter, his matchmaker, his manager...I don’t want touch these guys. Not for me.”