The legend of the Kazakhstan fighter Gennady Golovkin continues to grow. It seems virtually impossible for any current fighter at 160lbs to hear the sound of the 12th round. Predictions of Golovkin winning by knockout against any fighter in the division are never outlandish. Golovkin has showcased his great power on the HBO television network for years. Many people have seen Golovkin’s performances under the bright lights, but amazing stories of sparring sessions remains relatively unheard of.
Abel Sanchez in the past has revealed stories of Golovkin’s sparring sessions with well-known top class fighters. One of the most famous incidents dealt with Sergey Kovalev. Sanchez described the encounter to Hustleboss.com as a mismatch. He stated, “He [Kovalev] was one of the sparring partners that we had. He was with me for about a year and a half. Really Kovalev was afraid of Golovkin when he was in the ring. I couldn’t spar him too much because he showed too much respect for Golovkin. He just fell apart in their with Golovkin.”
Sanchez also confirmed with Bayloric TV, “Golovkin did drop Kovalev [in sparring].”
Another intriguing sparring session that took place is with Tyrell Hendrix. Hendrix told ESNEWS, “I’m going to tell you the truth that Golovkin guy is no hype. He punch[es] so hard he punched through the head gear. He has freakishly unreal power, but what people don’t know I knocked him down the first round when it came to sparring. Abel Sanchez got the video they might not want to show that. I dropped him to the body.”
Despite the knockdown Hendrix admitted Golovkin definitely got the better of him. “I knocked him down in the first round […] and after that he beat me up every other day it was nasty.”
Alfredo Angulo was also an opponent who tried to showcase his talent in the ring with Golovkin. Sanchez told Hustleboss.com, “I think the sparring with Angulo was probably the most memorable because Angulo came here to try and prove a point, and he couldn’t. They [the sparring sessions] were hard. Angulo wasn’t holding back and Gennady was trying to work with him. Angulo had no fear and he was trying to do his thing.”
Gennady Golovkin has also sparred with other big names such as Marcos Maidana and Canelo Alvarez, but they weren’t as intense. Sparring matches and professional bouts are two different scenarios, but sometimes there are a few intriguing matchups behind the scenes that only a few get to see.
