Gennady “GGG” Golovkin’s (29-0, 26 KO) dominance continues. On Saturday in Monte Carlo, Golovkin dismantled Osumanu Adama (22-4) and stopped him in the seventh round to maintain his IBO and WBA middleweight titles. Golovkin’s fights normally appear on HBO, but the network chose not to televise this one. Matt Evon and BoxNation blasted HBO’s choice not to air the fight.
American audiences missed out on a pretty entertaining scrap.
It was Golovkin’s 16th-straight KO victory. Though the champion prevailed, Adama was game and determined to execute his game plan. He wanted to use his long arms and movement to outbox the champion.
But like the Terminator, Golovkin stalked his prey and captured his 29th win and 26th knockout.
Adama was no tomato can.
As ESPN’s Dan Rafael and Max Boxing’s Steve Kim point out, the 33-year-old Ghanaian had never been stopped and had held his own against former champion Daniel Geale.
Golovkin dropped Adama late in the first round with a strong combination. The challenger didn’t appear hurt, but more stunned by the blows. He was knocked down again in the sixth and seventh rounds before the stoppage.
The knockdown in the seventh came from a stiff jab.
Adama’s energy had been almost completely drained by Golovkin’s persistent and brutal body work. The stoppage seemed a bit premature, as it didn’t occur during a flurry. Nonetheless, referee Luis Pabon made the call to end Adama’s suffering in a fight he clearly couldn’t win.
Kim applauded Pabon’s choice to stop the fight.
To his credit, Adama didn’t fold. He had a few moments in the third, fourth and fifth rounds. He just didn’t have the power to get Golovkin’s respect. BoxRec News acknowledged Adama’s heart.
Coming into the fight, 16 of Adama’s 22 wins had come by knockout. Considering the fact that he landed flush shots on Golovkin during the fight, it would seem that concerns about the champion’s chin are fading away.
Adama is a quality middleweight. He was simply out-classed by a champion who has all the makings of a great one. There are so many intriguing fights for Golovkin at this point. Taking on Andre Ward has been discussed. Both men fight under the HBO banner. There’s also the possibility of facing the winner of the Miguel Cotto vs. Sergio Martinez bout set for June 7.
Per Boxing News Ed, Golovkin dropped some serious names in the post-fight interview:
Martinez still has to get by Cotto—which is far from a foregone conclusion—and Floyd Mayweather Jr. is a tall task, even for Golovkin.
We’ll have to wait and see what’s next for him. American boxing fans can only hope the next bout is televised stateside.
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