Saul Alvarez v Gennady Golovkin
Sunday, 05:00
Live on Sky Sports
The trilogy
It's the completion of the trilogy most followers of professional boxing thought they'd never see as Saul Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin prepare to share the ring for the third time this weekend. The middleweight rivals clash at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas as Mexico takes on Kazakhstan in a bout watched by the world.
Canelo holds a slight advantage over Triple G, with the head-to-head stats showing one win for the Mexican following a draw in their opening bout. Another close contest is expected, although the younger Saul is the favourite. Bettors expect him to come on top and bag a 2-0 lead. Where do your loyalties lie for this one?
Canelo suffers a rare loss
For the first time since March 2014, we see Alvarez enter the ring following defeat in his previous outing. The Mexican was beaten on points by Floyd Mayweather Jnr in Sin City, taking six months out before returning to stop Alfredo Angulo in the 10th round. Something similar here would be just the ticket.
Canelo's professional boxing record now reads 57 wins against two defeats, with 39 of those wins coming inside the distance. Both losses have been on the judges' scorecards, going down against Dmitri Bivol for the WBA light heavyweight world title in May. Fans want to see a rapid return to winning ways, and this looks like the perfect fight to do it.
Alvarez will enjoy the support of the crowd in what's sure to be a blockbuster evening in Las Vegas, but will he call on that support to remain unbeaten against Triple G? Back Alvarez for the win at odds of 1.232/9 on the Betfair Exchange. Another points verdict is 2.186/5 with a stunning KO/TKO 2.89/5.
Triple G has nothing to lose
Golovkin will travel to Las Vegas, aware that there aren't too many big nights like this left in his career. At 40 years old, the fighter born in Kazakhstan but now based in Los Angeles carries a CV detailing 42 wins against one defeat and a draw with Saul five years ago. Will this be the night he finally gets his revenge, having thought he had done enough to win the first time?
This is a fight Golovkin and his army of followers have been calling for but is the 5ft 10inch orthodox ready? This is his final chance to score a win over Canelo and leave a legacy. If he claims victory in this bout - against the odds - we could see Gennady retire, having cemented his legacy in the sport.
He'll be remembered as one of boxing's biggest punchers, but will we look back on an amazing win over the best pound-for-pound fighter of our generation? You can bet on Golovkin to win this fight at 5.95/1 or aim higher from the method of victory market. A KO/TKO is 1615/1, deemed more likely than a points victory at 9.417/2.
A tough call
It feels wrong to go against Golovkin as he's one of the best fighters we've seen at middleweight since the division's golden era.
It's not often a modern boxer is compared to the greats and win, lose or draw on Saturday; Gennady has given us some memorable nights, something all boxing fans thank him for. He's been a great servant, but does he have enough left in the tank? I don't think so.
I believe this would have been a closer bout if Alvarez had won last time and, perhaps, grown complacent when preparing for a rematch against an opponent past his best. Alvarez now can't afford back-to-back defeats, so we're taking him for the points win.