What If? Gennady “GGG” Golovkin Vs Tony “Man of Steel” Zale

By Ian “The Boxing Historian” Murphy

What if? This is part of what makes boxing such a compelling subject to write about. There are endless fantasy fights to ponder and consider. Usually, most boxing fans choose the fighter from a generation they are most familiar with, kind of like 82% of males under 50 tend to look at prime Mike Tyson as the be all and end all. “Iron Mike” is for sure a solid pick, as at his best he was hell on wheels. However, this argument is not without flaws and holes in its logic. With emotion, blind allegiance, and favoritism often taking over, few can take a step back and look at the whole picture objectively.

For example, I, myself, by and large tend to favor old-time fighters. However, there are times when I do choose a modern fellow, or give the new fighter a better chance than “experts” (and everyone indeed is an expert these days it seems!) would think. Case in point is Sugar Ray Robinson vs Roy Jones, JR. On paper (and if you ask the experts) SRR is a huge favorite. I disagree. RJJ had a very unique skill set (much like Robinson) and his incredible speed and power would have made a very tough fight for the smaller Robinson. SRR is a natural welterweight, while Jones competed as high as 193lbs. That is over forty pounds potentially to overcome. Now, RJJ was not as his best at Heavyweight, but he was effective. One “modern vs old time” match up that I feel would truly be one for the ages is Gary, Indiana’s “Man of Steel” Tony Zale and Gennady “GGG” Golovkin.

In many ways, Golovkin’s style mirrors that of Zale. They both are heavy handed brutes at Middleweight who do a tremendous amount of damage to the body. Golovkin might actually be a little more polished due to his extensive amateur background (over 350 fights in the Russian amateur style) and has a superior and more versatile jab. Golovkin also has never been floored as a pro or amateur. Mind you, he has yet to face a truly elite level fighter as a professional, and Zale fought in one of the most competitive eras in Middleweight history. All that being said, these two guys will bring it and not back down.

Head to head, they are about the same size (GGG is 5’10, Zale 5’9) and both are not small Middleweights. As previously said, Golovkin is more polished and perhaps more versatile (he kept big hitter David Lemieux on the end of his jab for at least 5 rounds before dispatching him with a body shot in the 8th), while Zale has proven durability, recovery ability, and the gas to hit hard for 15 rounds. Edge in power is hard to measure, but I’d give Zale a slight edge due to finishing better quality opponents. GGG has never had (or ever will, nowadays) to fight anyone like Al Hostak, who was an absolute terror. Zale beat him three times, and at the time of their first fight in 1940, reigning MW champion Hostak was 59-2. Neither Zale nor GGG are noted for slick defense but both aren’t “catchers” by any means. In short, it comes down to who wants it more and who is willing to take more to get his man out of there…

THE FIGHT

Both Zale and Golovkin come in prepared, fit, and cool as ice. The lead up to the fight was respectful and quiet. Zale displayed his usual stoicism and pride while GGG was a little more playful, stating this would be “the biggest of the Big Drama Shows”. The press has the odds pretty much even, though Zale has had far superior quality of opposition. Nevertheless, GGG has beaten down every one that was put in front of him, so most look at this as a pick ‘em fight.

ROUND 1

Zale comes right out and meets Golovkin in the center of the ring, throws a feeler left jab, and is met with a stiff right hand from GGG. Tony slips the right and counters with a left hook, which lands high on Golovkin’s head. GGG jabs and moves out. Knowing Zale is the biggest hitter he’s faced, Golovkin looks to keep Zale off of him with stiff jabs to avoid early exchanges. GGG continues to throw a high volume of jabs, some landing, some being slipped. It looks like GGG is measuring Zale so he can land that big right hand and Zale appears to close that distance inch by inch in attempt to render GGG’s jab less effective. The round ends with Golovkin landing a hard left to Zale’s body. Both are unhurt, but GGG was the busier and more active fighter. 10-9 GOLOVKIN.

ROUND 2

Golovkin is still looking to establish his jab, but is finding that while it is landing occasionally, it is not keeping Zale off of him at the range he wants. Tony is creeping closer and closer and GGG feels the ring shrinking around him. Nonetheless, Zale is not landing anything of consequence, and GGG’s jab and punch rate win him another round. 10-9 GOLOVKIN.

ROUND 3

GGG is still firing that jab out there, but about a minute into the round, Zale pivots inside Golovkin’s jab lands a huge right hand to the side of the body. You can hear an audible “thump” echoing in the arena and the fans respond with enthusiasm. Zale follows up with a left hook that GGG slips and then the fighters clinch. This is the first punch for either man that landed with any serious authority. Zale breaks free and lands a glancing left hook to the head, but again buries a heavy right to GGG’s body. He had Golovkin trapped in the corner and is firing shots left and right. GGG manages to smother most, but a few more hard rights find their mark. The round ends with GGG overextending a jab and Zale ducking underneath. 10-9 ZALE

ROUND 4

After the assault on his body during the previous round, GGG needs to find a way to keep Zale off of him. The plan to wear him down with the jab goes out the window. Golovkin goes right after Zale and starts teeing off on his surprised foe and lands a very hard right/left combination that forces Zale to clinch. Both men land good body shots up close with GGG getting the better of the exchange. Zale then spins GGG back into the corner and leaps in with a huge left to the head which forces GGG to raise his hand to block it. Tony then fires two hard rights to the left side of GGG’s body. Now there is visible bruising and redness on Golovkins body. GGG shows his bravery and punches his way out of the corner with a sizzling lead right/left hook/left to the body combination. The left hook grazes Zale’s eyebrow but leaves a nasty cut behind. Zale clinches and the round ends. 10-10

ROUNDS 5 – 8

The emerging pattern is GGG working on Zale’s cut with his jab and left hook and Zale continuing with brutal body shots and trying to connect with that left hook follow up. GGG is a smooth operator and catching him clean to the head has been a challenge. Rounds 5 and 6 go to GGG while rounds 7 and 8 are Zale’s. At the end of the 8th round, Zale’s cut is under control and he appears to be the fresher of the two. The left side of Golovkin’s body is all bruised and welted. He is having trouble jabbing or hooking effectively with his left. He is favoring that side, but not giving up.

ROUND 9

Zale, having won the past two rounds, comes out aggressively in round 9. He waits for an overcommitted jab and finally lands cleanly his patented combo and GGG appears to be hurt. Zale runs after him and GGG, playing possum, lands a crushing right hand to Zale’s jaw! Tony’s legs buckle and GGG is coming for him. Zale refuses to go down and clinches to clear his head. The round ends with Zale steady on his feet and GGG is in utter disbelief that he didn’t go down. They don’t call him “The Man of Steel” for nothing! 10-9 GOLOVKIN

ROUND 10

GGG leaves his corner slowly, leery of his apparently recovered opponent. Zale goes on the offensive, using a hard, stiff jab to get GGG moving backward. Golovkin is confused at this change in tactic and looks to create distance to get his bearings. GGG throws a sloppy jab and is met by The Combo. The left hand whistled over his head because he right to the body doubles him over in pain, and GGG takes a knee. Gennady Golovkin is on the deck, wheezing and wincing. He gets up at 8 and the round ends, saving him from being finished right there and then. 10-9 ZALE

ROUND 11

Tony Zale comes out with reckless abandon in the 11th, knowing he has his man where he wants him. When he floored GGG, Zale felt the crunch of cracked ribs on contact in the round prior and knows it is time. GGG’s left side will be useless and he won’t be able to hold off a prolonged assault. GGG is hanging tough because he’s a true warrior, but Zale is all over him. He cannot keep the Man of Steel off of him. Zale works left hook/right hand combos to the head and GGG is protecting his left side. Midway through the round, Zale land a crushing right to the head and GGG’s legs betray him and he careens to his right and falls into Zale’s corner. Ray Arcel is staring coldly at him and Zale is relentless in his attempt to finish the fight. Tony lands another right hand and GGG stumbles out of the corner, grabbing the ropes to keep himself from falling. The ref steps in at 2:01 of the 11th round and stops the fight. Tony Zale wins by TKO.

Now we all know that anything can happen in these sorts of match ups. We are not dealing with pro vs amateur, where there is a very clear and obvious favorite. I picked Zale to win because he’s come from behind and won. He’s had to dig deep and adjust to win against incredible competition. Golovkin is the goods, and there is no disputing that, but he’s still unproven against truly top opponents. He’s being avoided (with good reason!) like the plague, and that is not his fault. Beyond those intangibles, I think that Zale is just mentally unbreakable. That kind of opponent is very tough to defeat. Beatable, (everyone is of course) but unbreakable. He is like Rocky Balboa. Remember what Duke told Apollo Creed in Rocky II when Apollo wanted to know why Duke was trying to avoid a rematch with Rocky? He said “I saw you beat that man like I’ve never seen any man get beat before, and the man… kept…coming… after you!” That was Tony Zale.

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