WHO WINS? Gennady 'GGG' Golovkin vs. Billy Joe Saunders

[dirk2686]

Saunders is a Parker to GGG/Canelo's Fury/Joshua.

Has to be mentioned in the same breath purely down to having a title, but realistically not close to being on the same level ability wise.

[Andrew]

Saunders is a Parker to GGG/Canelo's Fury/Joshua.

Has to be mentioned in the same breath purely down to having a title, but realistically not close to being on the same level ability wise.

Bang on.

[milpool]

It's almost akin to the late 80's when Mike Tyson was the undisputed champion and by far and away the best heavyweight out there, yet you had an Italian that nobody cared for masquerading as the WBO champion.

[Jackson328]

It's almost akin to the late 80's when Mike Tyson was the undisputed champion and by far and away the best heavyweight out there, yet you had an Italian that nobody cared for masquerading as the WBO champion.

Francesco Damiani wasn't it? And I seem to remember the WBO didn't even rank Tyson in their top ten at a time when he owned all 3 major belts!

Does anyone give BJS more or less chance vs GGG after last night?

[dirk2686]

It's almost akin to the late 80's when Mike Tyson was the undisputed champion and by far and away the best heavyweight out there, yet you had an Italian that nobody cared for masquerading as the WBO champion.

Francesco Damiani wasn't it? And I seem to remember the WBO didn't even rank Tyson in their top ten at a time when he owned all 3 major belts!

Does anyone give BJS more or less chance vs GGG after last night?

Golovkin in my opinion beat Canelo who is elite level. Saunders laboured against an opponent who did next to nothing.

Golovkin's footwork is still excellent and we all know he's a monster puncher. He'd absolutely batter Saunders and last night just confirmed what already seemed obvious to me.

[Andrew]

It's almost akin to the late 80's when Mike Tyson was the undisputed champion and by far and away the best heavyweight out there, yet you had an Italian that nobody cared for masquerading as the WBO champion.

Francesco Damiani wasn't it? And I seem to remember the WBO didn't even rank Tyson in their top ten at a time when he owned all 3 major belts!

Does anyone give BJS more or less chance vs GGG after last night?

Did it damage tysons legacy not getting the last belt.

No

Did it damage Lennox not getting the WBO ?

No

I couldn't care less about Saunders fighting GGG. I'd much rather see him fight Eubank again but no chance of that.

Good thing is last nights result means he doesn't get that big payday he craves.

[Andrew]

It's good clearing the belts up but how relevant is Saunders in comparison to GGG or canelo.

Not very.

[mickey1975]

Billy gets a hiding. Can't see them being that bothered about him. In fact, he won't even cross their minds.

[Jackson328]

I think it sometimes depends on which type of WBO champion you are, if that makes sense? No-one took the WBO seriously when it first started sanctioning bouts but they have had some great champions over the years all the same. The stigma seems to stick more if you are happy to remain a WBO champ and not try to unify with the other titlists. Calzaghe/Eubank for example, they appeared happy to stay in the UK beating fringe contenders when all their contemporary peers were US-based. Calzaghe finally got some kudos after beating Kessler to unify then the schooling of Lacy but both fights were in the UK. Eubank had two natural domestic rivals in Benn/Watson then Collins came along to give him another couple of paydays later on in his career. Neither will be remembered as true ATG's by most people within the sport.

Career-wise Saunders was going very well in beating Eubank Jr then winning the WBO but has failed to capitalise on that and his career has stalled somewhat since. I really do wonder where he can go next? The clamour for a rematch between GGG/Canelo will surely tie those two up for a few more months and Bills natural domestic rival (Junior) is contesting the WBSS at 168 so its hard to see any defining fights for him in the immediate future. There was a time when I could have seen BJS at least making it interesting vs GGG or Canelo but I fear that ship may have sailed now.

[wesshaw1985]

does Saunders under Ingle cause GGG any problems?

[wesshaw1985]

Golovkin's Promoter: Saunders Will Be Next, Not a Canelo Trilogy - http://www.BS.com/golovkins-pr ... gy--125125

[dirk2686]

Golovkin's Promoter: Saunders Will Be Next, Not a Canelo Trilogy - http://www.BS.com/golovkins-pr ... gy--125125

If Canelo sneaks a razor thin victory and a September fight makes sense then it'll happen.

[jamesmcdonnell]

Billy gets a hiding. Can't see them being that bothered about him. In fact, he won't even cross their minds.

I used to think the same, not any more. The new version of Saunders is a lot harder to hit.

I think it would be a points win for GGG, who seems to have lost a step, and takes longer to pull the trigger these days. Another year, and I think it could be a very close fight.

Not convinced that GGG is going to win against Canelo, I think he will try and stop him, but not sure he will be able to. The only way I see him doing so, is if he pushes the fight from the very start, and forces Canelo to work hard, and tire him out. Canelo otherwise will do enough to survive, and maybe get the decision. It's going to be tight.

No way should Byrd under any circumstances be allowed to judge the fight.

[Wa1nuts]

Saunders is a Parker to GGG/Canelo's Fury/Joshua.

Has to be mentioned in the same breath purely down to having a title, but realistically not close to being on the same level ability wise.

You still think that after his last victory?

[dirk2686]

Saunders is a Parker to GGG/Canelo's Fury/Joshua.

Has to be mentioned in the same breath purely down to having a title, but realistically not close to being on the same level ability wise.

You still think that after his last victory?

His last win was by his most impressive but I stand by the comment; a guy who sneaked a very close win against Andy Lee and was all over the place against a guy like Akavov couldn't really be held up as the guy who was going to trouble the absolute elite.

[leejonesjnr]

Saunders is a Parker to GGG/Canelo's Fury/Joshua.

Has to be mentioned in the same breath purely down to having a title, but realistically not close to being on the same level ability wise.

You still think that after his last victory?

His last win was by his most impressive but I stand by the comment; a guy who sneaked a very close win against Andy Lee and was all over the place against a guy like Akavov couldn't really be held up as the guy who was going to trouble the absolute elite.

Quite, but is he still that guy?

[dirk2686]

You still think that after his last victory?

His last win was by his most impressive but I stand by the comment; a guy who sneaked a very close win against Andy Lee and was all over the place against a guy like Akavov couldn't really be held up as the guy who was going to trouble the absolute elite.

Quite, but is he still that guy?

Hard to say. He certainly looked to have improved but he didn't really do anything to Lemiuex that Golovkin didn't do more impressively.

I obviously expect him to beat Murray but I think it'll be a good fight to see where he is. It's the sort of fight you could see the 'old' Saunders winning but looking scrappy. If he wins with ease it definitely suggests he's making clear improvement.

[Deleted_Scenes]

Saunders is a Parker to GGG/Canelo's Fury/Joshua.

Has to be mentioned in the same breath purely down to having a title, but realistically not close to being on the same level ability wise.

You still think that after his last victory?

His last win was by his most impressive but I stand by the comment; a guy who sneaked a very close win against Andy Lee and was all over the place against a guy like Akavov couldn't really be held up as the guy who was going to trouble the absolute elite.

Saunders fights to the level of his opponent. When he's motivated and he trains properly, he's a match for anyone. I'm not saying he'd beat Golovkin, but he'd give him fits whatever the end result. He's a very talented fighter, who just needs a kick up the backside to perform properly. Ingle seems to be giving him that.

I will go as far as to say he does beat Canelo (dodgy scorecards aside), although Oscar probably never lets that one happen... It won't make "business sense".

[dirk2686]

That may be the case but that also sounds, to be fair, like something people say when they're excusing fighters for poor performances. Also, it's not necessarily true in the sense that he steps up against quality. Lemieux would be a big outsider against Eubank and has lost to fighters who are probably comparable in class to Andy Lee, both of whom Saunders struggled with to an extent.

Basically in his last fight he looked great but we've seen enough average performances from him that it's a legitimate question to ask; was the Lemieux fight a perfect storm or has Saunders improved to the extent that that's what he's now like?

[gilgamesh]

GGG is beginning to slide, Saunders is just now coming into his best. The matchup favors Saunders more and more as time goes on.

[jamamb]

i do wonder if the lemieux wins gotten slightly overrated

i mean, ggg is hardly a 'boxer' type fighter, but look how he carved up lemieux with jabs, kept him out of range, got hit with like nothing, and easily stopped him in 8. has he done that against anyone else? no, he looks more like a face blocking but very strong slugger vs other opponents. even guys like rosado and monroe and adamu and stevens hit him way more than lemieux did.

bjs is very good when hes on, but are we overrating the lemieux win, at least with what it says about how hed do vs the elite? perhaps lemieux was just the right type to flatter. certanly f you just watch the lemieux vs ggg fight youd think ggg is a better 'boxer' than hes shown really at any other time.

[BitPlayer]

Saunders is a Parker to GGG/Canelo's Fury/Joshua.

Has to be mentioned in the same breath purely down to having a title, but realistically not close to being on the same level ability wise.

Nah, I think Saunders can put up a better fight. I think he could maybe beat Canelo, but GGG is all wrong for him (which is who he seems to want more)

[brilo33]

i do wonder if the lemieux wins gotten slightly overrated

i mean, ggg is hardly a 'boxer' type fighter, but look how he carved up lemieux with jabs, kept him out of range, got hit with like nothing, and easily stopped him in 8. has he done that against anyone else? no, he looks more like a face blocking but very strong slugger vs other opponents. even guys like rosado and monroe and adamu and stevens hit him way more than lemieux did.

bjs is very good when hes on, but are we overrating the lemieux win, at least with what it says about how hed do vs the elite? perhaps lemieux was just the right type to flatter. certanly f you just watch the lemieux vs ggg fight youd think ggg is a better 'boxer' than hes shown really at any other time.

the thing is jamamb, i dont think bjs will get drawn in to a brawl like saul. i think he has enough about him now to box on the back foot move and trade when needs too , he has that discipline about him , i think a top ggg beats bjs , but it aint a top ggg no more , bjs beat eubanks jr he is on the up, bjs beat spike hes on the up ,bjs beat ryder hes on the up , he beat lee when he was on the up beat lemieux, i mean bar saul ,bjs has probably beat the better opponents then ggg

[jamamb]

well ggg didnt beat saul so i guess you think bjs record of wins is better than gggs? it may be!

but about lemieux specifically, i mean even hittable ggg looked slick against him. that never happened vs anyone else, even stevens, monroe, adamu, rosado, etc. just wonder, even though it was very nice win, if perhaps it doesnt say quite as much about bjs vs elite opposition as we think

look at how lem couldnt land a punch on ggg but then how jacobs landed over and over. just way different levels

[brilo33]

well ggg didnt beat saul so i guess you think bjs record of wins is better than gggs? it may be!

but about lemieux specifically, i mean even hittable ggg looked slick against him. that never happened vs anyone else, even stevens, monroe, adamu, rosado, etc. just wonder, even though it was very nice win, if perhaps it doesnt say quite as much about bjs vs elite opposition as we think

look at how lem couldnt land a punch on ggg but then how jacobs landed over and over. just way different levels

well that is the thing jamab bjs beat eubank jr , spike, ryder , lee ,all them fighters are winning now and getting better , as where with triple g opponents that he has beat bar Jacobs have been on the slide