MIRACLE MAN TESTS GOLOVKIN’S WILL
Golovkin finally tested for the first time, beats Jacobs by unanimous decision
Exhausted beyond anything he’d felt in the ring, Gennady Golovkin could barely lift his collection of title belts.
Danny Jacobs thought they should have been in his possession.
Golovkin outlasted Jacobs in a superb 12-round defense of his middleweight titles Saturday night. Both fighters are knockout artists, yet this one went the distance — the first time GGG has not had a KO in 24 fights, and his first time going 12 rounds. The Kazakh won 115-112 on two judges’ cards and 114-113 on the other.
The AP had it 114-113 for Golovkin.
“I give Gennady a 7 1/2 or an
Jacobs, who says he thought he won by two rounds, got down in fourth
8 out of 10,” said his trainer, Abel Sanchez. “Daniel’s athleticism was very strong tonight. Gennady’s accuracy was not quite as pin-point.”
In by far the toughest fight of his stellar career, Golovkin often was stymied by Jacobs changing to a left-handed style. But a series of hard rights throughout the bout were enough — barely — to bring his record to 37-0.
“Daniel did a very good job,” Golovkin said. “Daniel is my favorite fighter. I can’t destroy him.”
He didn’t, unlike so many other opponents who felt the fury of GGG.
“I thought I won it by at least two rounds, minimum,” said Ja-
Golovkin, who is now 37-0, says he is willing to give Jacobs a rematch
cobs, nicknamed Miracle Man after he overcame bone cancer in 201112 to win 10 straight fights. “I did feel like I had to win the 12th round to make sure.”
He won it on two of the three cards, but it wasn’t enough, perhaps because he was knocked down in the fourth round, which went to Golovkin 10-8 on all three cards.
Still, with Madison Square Garden reverberating from chants of “Triple G” or “JACOBS,” no one could be sure of the outcome right until the final punch.
Jacobs is 32-2 and lost his WBA crown to GGG in the HBO pay-perview card. . /