Aside from the upcoming showdown between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather, boxing fans are eager to see middleweight champions Gennady Golovkin and Miguel Cotto collide in a title unification bout, but will the fight happen?
Golovkin, the reigning International Boxing Organization and World Boxing Association middleweight champion, is set to defend his title against Willie Monroe Jr. on May 16 at the Forum in Inglewood, California.
While he is focused on winning against Monroe in their upcoming fight, Golovkin admitted that he is still aching for a title unification showdown with Cotto. The 32-year-old Kazakh said that he will make a strong push to convince Cotto to face him after his fight against Monroe.
"My work is in the ring and in my training camp," Golovkin told Nacion ESPN. "A fight with Cotto, well that's a good question for the promoters. I think Miguel understands my situations. He knows I want to fight him. My focus will be on Miguel Cotto after this fight."
Golovkin, who holds a perfect 32-0 record with 29 knockouts, is also being linked to a showdown with Saul "Canelo" Alvarez and Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. But when asked about Alvarez and Chavez, Golovkin said that he wants to face both fighters, but he is aiming to unify the middleweight titles first before considering other options.
Tom Loeffler of K2 Promotions told BoxingScene that they tried to negotiate with Cotto, but he revealed the World Boxing Council middleweight champion did not respond, forcing them to face Monroe on May 16.
"We didn't get a response from Cotto," Loeffler said. "I reached out to his people and you can't negotiate if you don't even get a response. That's one of those fights where Cotto either has to fight him in the future or vacate the title, according to the WBC."
Cotto won the title via a 10th round knockout win against Sergio Martinez in June last year. WBC recently said that Cotto can defend his title against an opponent of his choice in his next fight, but will have to give Golovkin a shot if he wins in his first defense.
Cotto has yet to reveal his opponent for his upcoming fight on June 6 in New York, but legal adviser Gaby PeñagarÃcano told ESPN Deportes that they are already finalizing the details and could make an announcement in the coming days.
"We're actually discussing names with both HBO and Showtime and seeing how they are willing to approve and then it's up to Miguel to make a decision," PeñagarÃcano said. "It should be coming in the next few days or so."
