Gennadiy Golovkin and Ryota Murata have agreed to a deal for a Dec. 29 middleweight title unification bout at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, multiple sources told ESPN. A formal announcement is expected next week.
The fight will take place just outside Murata's hometown, Tokyo. The Olympic gold medalist is a major star in Japan and the biggest boxing attraction in the country.
The sides had an agreement in principle months ago but GGG still needed to strike an amended deal with streaming service DAZN. The longtime 160-pound champion signed a six-fight pact with DAZN worth approximately $100 million in early 2019.
However, that deal hinged on DAZN's belief that GGG would fight Canelo Alvarez a third time. The boxers competed twice - 2017 and 2018 - major events that were incredibly competitive. The first fight was ruled a draw with Alvarez earning the decision in the second contest.
With GGG and DAZN now on the same page, Golovkin will look to once become unified middleweight champion.
ESPN's No. 2 middleweight, Golovkin (41-1-1, 36 KOs) hasn't competed since a December TKO victory over fringe contender Kamil Szeremeta.
The 39-year-old, a future Hall of Famer, looked great in defeat against Alvarez in September 2018, but the following year, he surprisingly struggled with Sergiy Derevyanchenko.
GGG earned the controversial decision in that October fight, a contender for fight of the year. However, the performance left many wondering just how much Golovkin has left. Long considered one of the most devastating punchers in boxing, GGG won an Olympic silver medal at the 2004 games and went on to dominate the 160-pound division.
Despite his status as middleweight titleholder, Murata (16-2, 13 KOs), 35, will be stepping up to the elite level for the first time in his career. He avenged both of his pro defeats via knockout after being outpointed by Hassan N'Dam and Rob Brant.
Since turning pro in 2013, Murata, ESPN's No. 4 middleweight, has never fought less than twice a year. However, his last fight came in December 2019, a fifth-round TKO of Steven Butler.
Last edited by Ruthless-RKO on 09 Apr 2022, 19:43, edited 14 times in total.
If Golovkin is prepared to lock horns with Murata rather than box him this will be a humdinger
First of all the talk was Eubank Jnr getting to challenge Murata, then that went quiet so Eubank jnr seemingly turned his attention to Golovkin. Now Eubank Jnr gets neither of them an those two are fighting each other.
tbh im not arsed anymore with ggg fighting elite guys, dude is like 40 and fading, i like fights like this for him tbh . i hope he fights munguia next year, would be a slobber knocker
Even though there must be a healthy pay cheque in it for GGG, you have to respect him for travelling to his opponents country again despite his increasing years.
Murata is strong, tough & aggressive, but can be outboxed if you're good enough and GGG is certainly good ! Murata's also been out for 2 years by fight time.
If they both choose to meet in the middle then all hell "could" break loose. I wonder if the both still have that willingness & intensity to go toe to toe Let's hope so
Murata is one of the countless "world" champions who has benefited from the multiple Alphabet titles, but despite his limitations he brings plenty of heat. He makes for good fights IF the opponent is prepared to stand & trade. That's why I'd been banging the drum for Eubank jnr to challenge him....it would have been a hard, bruising fight.
I'm guessing GGG will use his undoubted skills and make it his type of fight, but the potential is there for some sparks to fly
Gennadiy "GGG" Golovkin (41-1-1, 36 KOs), from Karaganda, Kazakhstan, boxing's most dominant middleweight of his era, is bringing the Big Drama Show and his IBF and IBO world title belts to his opponent's backyard, Japan, where he will rumble with two-time WBA middleweight kingpin Ryota Murata (16-2, 13 KOs), in a long-awaited title unification fight.
Promoted by Teiken Promotions Inc., in association with GGG Promotions, Golovkin vs. Murata takes place Wednesday, December 29, and will be streamed live from Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, which border's Murata's hometown of Tokyo, to over 200 countries and territories, including the U.S., exclusively on DAZN (excluding Japan and Kazakhstan).
In a battle of two-time world champions and Olympic medalists, Golovkin and Murata will be looking to put their stamp on, arguably, boxing's most storied weight class. They boast a combined record of 57-3-1, 49 KOs -- a winning percentage of over 93% -- with 86% of their victories coming by way of knockout.
"I am really excited to be bringing the Big Drama Show to Japan, a country where boxing is very popular," said Golovkin.
"Ryota Murata has been an outstanding champion. It is going to be a special night when we meet in the ring to unify our titles. We are going to give the fans a great fight."
Golovkin, who has worn a world championship belt every year since 2010, will be looking to build on his division-record of successful title defenses, which currently stands at 21. He returns to the ring in the midst of his second reign as a middleweight world champion. Golovkin regained the IBF and IBO middleweight titles in 2019 with a unanimous decision victory over top-rated contender Sergiy Derevyanchenko, a three-time world title challenger. It was a hellacious toe-to-toe slugfest that had the frenzied crowd at Madison Square Garden on its feet for the entire 12 rounds. Many considered it the Fight of the Year.
In his last fight, on December 18, 2020, Golovkin scored four knockdowns against undefeated mandatory challenger Kamil Szeremeta, en route to a seventh-round stoppage and a record 21st successful middleweight title defense. Golovkin's Big Drama Show has packed iconic arenas around the world, selling out Madison Square Garden, The O2 in London, the Fabulous Forum and StubHub Center in Los Angeles, and T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. This will be his first time fighting in Japan. His 11-year rampage on the middleweight division has also attracted millions of viewers who have watched him on premium cable, pay-per-view, and DAZN. He earned an Olympic silver medal as a middleweight in the 2004 summer games in Athens.
Murata's two world title reigns have begun with stoppage victories in immediate rematches that avenged losses. After losing a split decision to Hassan N'Dam on May 20, 2017, for the vacant WBA middleweight title, he dethroned N'Dam in the seventh round five months later, on October 22, 2017. After a successful title defense -- an eighth-round TKO of Emanuele Blandamura on April 15, 2018 -- Murata lost his title to Rob Brant via a unanimous decision on October 20, 2018. Nine months later, on July 12, 2019, Murata stopped Brant in the second round to reclaim the WBA middleweight title.
In his last fight, before the pandemic, Murata successfully defended his title with a fifth-round TKO of once-beaten Steven Butler. The six-foot Murata, one of Japan's most popular athletes, first came to the world's attention when he captured the Olympic gold medal in the middleweight division at the 2012 Olympics held in London. It was the first gold medal won by a Japanese boxer since Takao Sakurai in 1964, and also Japan's first-ever boxing medal in a weight class other than bantamweight or flyweight. Murata also became the 100th gold medalist in Japanese Olympic history. Murata’s last eight victories have come by way of stoppage.
"I feel that my entire amateur and professional boxing career has been a preparation for this fight against Gennadiy Golovkin. This fight will determine my place in the middleweight division and boxing history," said Murata. "Gennadiy Golovkin has long been the standard-bearer of the middleweight division. To me, he is still undefeated. I have the highest respect for him. It has been almost two years since my last fight, because of the pandemic, but I have put that time to good use, working very hard with my trainers on improving my physical conditioning and adding more power to my punches. I am so proud Japan is hosting this fight. It is a great honor for me."
Are the rumours true that this is dazn's first PPV fight (think for international subscribers) if it is - well not quite the blockbuster events only that dazn assured its viewers.
stujones wrote: ↑12 Nov 2021, 08:15
Are the rumours true that this is dazn's first PPV fight (think for international subscribers) if it is - well not quite the blockbuster events only that dazn assured its viewers.
Poster says DAZN Worldwide apart from Japan and Kazakh.
They haven’t yet mentioned in the press release if it is PPV.
Golovkin shared the DAZN poster art on social media:
Gennadiy Golovkin and Ryota Murata had already agreed to a deal for a middleweight title unification on Dec. 29 in Saitama, Japan, and now the fight is set for DAZN in all territories except Japan and Kazakhstan.
In Japan, the fight will stream on Amazon Prime, according to Nikkan Sports.
Golovkin (41-1-1, 36 KO) has been out of the ring since his Dec. 2020 win over Kamil Szeremeta, an easy and dominant victory that saw him stop the game but out-gunned challenger after seven rounds of one-sided action. At 39, Golovkin is definitely past his prime, but will come in the favorite in Saitama.
That said, the 35-year-old Murata (16-2, 13 KO) should not be counted out here. An Olympic hero and major star in his home country, the 2012 Olympic gold medalist is a very good boxer with power, and may simply be catching GGG at the right time to score what would be a huge win.
The winner of the fight could very well be in line for a major money fight with undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez next year, though neither would necessarily be the favorite to land that fight, even if Canelo-GGG 3 — with Golovkin coming off of a good win — might still be the biggest money fight Canelo can take. It would rely on many factors, as we’ve discussed before.
But the basic good news here is that this fight is happening, because it’s a damn good matchup that could be a war, and it’ll be easy for everyone to watch it live apart from those outside of Japan having to be up at a weird hour to do it.
Top Rank Joins Forces with Prime Video in Japan to Stream Major Live Boxing Events
In a partnership with Teiken Promotions, a multi-fight agreement begins with the December 29 middleweight title unification fight between WBA Super Champion Ryōta Murata and IBF World Champion Gennadiy Golovkin
Additional events co-promoted by Teiken Promotions and Top Rank will be announced soon and stream in 2022 from Japan – All live boxing events will be available at no additional cost for Prime members on Prime Video Japan
Top Rank and Teiken Promotions, two of the world’s foremost boxing promotion companies, today announced a partnership with Prime Video Japan to livestream multiple events in 2021 and 2022. The world-class fight action — under the Prime Video Presents Live Boxing umbrella exclusively in Japan — debuts December 29 with the middleweight unification super fight between Japan’s WBA Super Champion Ryōta Murata and Kazakhstan’s IBF World Champion Gennadiy “GGG” Golovkin.
Murata-Golovkin, which will take place at Saitama Super Arena in Japan, is one of the most highly anticipated boxing events to take place on Japanese soil. Murata (16-2, 13 KOs), from Tokyo, became a sporting icon in his home nation after winning a gold medal at the 2012 London Olympics. He is a two-time middleweight world champion who last defended his WBA title with a fifth-round TKO over Steven Butler in December 2019. Golovkin (41-1-1, 36 KOs) is a future Hall of Famer who has made a record 21 middleweight title defenses over two reigns. He is coming off last December’s fifth-round knockout of Polish contender Kamil Szeremeta.
“Over the last few years, Prime Video has become the go-to destination for world-class entertainment in Japan,” said Takashi Kodama, country director, Prime Video Japan. “We are thrilled to now add live sports to our content selection. Prime members in Japan will be able to enjoy the fight of the year between our national hero Ryōta Murata and Gennadiy Golovkin on Prime Video at no additional cost to their Prime membership. We are happy to make this collaboration with Top Rank and Teiken Promotions for our first live sport offering in Japan.”
“For decades, boxing has been one of the premier sports in Japan,” said Top Rank President Todd duBoef. “It is a pleasure partnering with Teiken Promotions to bring the biggest stars to launch live boxing programming on Amazon Prime Video in Japan.”
“Teiken Promotions and Top Rank have enjoyed a fruitful working relationship for decades, and we look forward to bringing significant fights to the Prime Video Japan audience,” said Mr. Akihiko Honda, President of Teiken Promotions.
Additional Prime Video Presents Live Boxing events will stream live on Prime Video Japan in 2022. Fights, locations, and additional details about the forthcoming fight cards will be announced in due course.
Unbeaten WBO flyweight champion Junto Nakatani (22-0, 17 KOs), Japan, will put his belt on the line against #9 Cristian Gonzalez (14-1, 4 KOs), Mexico, on the undercard of the sensational middleweight showdown between WBA super champ Ryota Murata and IBF ruler Gennady Golovkin in Saitama, Japan, on December 29. It was announced by Teiken Promotions on Friday. Also, unbeaten lightweight prospect, OPBF and WBO AP champ Shuichiro Yoshino (14-0, 11 KOs) will risk his regional belts against ex-WBO 130-pound titlist Masayuki Ito (27-3-1, 15 KOs) over twelve frames.
It will be a highly anticipated encounter by Japanese aficionados. This show, within the territory of Japan, will be aired live exclusively by Amazon Prime Video.
jamesmcdonnell wrote: ↑15 Nov 2021, 12:54
At GGG's age, every fight against a decent genuine MW, is a potential banana skin, this might not be it, but he's old as fook now.
I’ve been watching some of his training and his body has an old look to it now. Kind of like my own
Let's hope so 
