Fight fans with a DAZN subscription will feel as though Christmas is coming a week early when boxing megastars Gennadiy Golovkin and Saul "Canelo" Alvarez main event two separate shows on consecutive evenings.
Golovkin strives to make a record 21st successful defense of a world middleweight championship when he meets Poland's Kamil Szeremeta on Dec. 18 in Hollywood, Florida just 24 hours before Canelo challenges Callum Smith for his WBA (Super) and The Ring super-middleweight titles at the Alamodome in San Antonio on Dec. 19.
Not only is this a huge double-header live on DAZN (except Kazakhstan for the Golovkin fight and Mexico for the Canelo fight), but it could be the weekend both fighters move on to talks for a trilogy fight in 2021.
So, are we likely to see the two superpowers collide for a third time? What would it take to put the two on course for another showdown in the new year? Here's what you need to know.
What happened in the first two Canelo vs. Golovkin fights?
Fight 1
The first meeting between Alvarez and "Triple G" occurred on Sept. 16, 2017, at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Titled "Supremacy," the contest was for the Mexican fighter's The Ring (lineal) middleweight title as well as Golovkin's WBA (Super), WBC and IBF belts.
Before a sold-out crowd of 22,358, Canelo and Golovkin went to a split draw. (113–115, 114–114, 118–110). The scorecards led to controversy — or at least, one of them did.
Many onlookers were torn as to who won the fight, though most agreed that a draw or victory for either fighter by a round or two was arguable. The score of judge Adelaide Byrd, however, had Alvarez up by eight of the 12 rounds. Byrd's judgment was fiercely criticized, as nobody else believed Canelo had come close to routing Golovkin.
Nonetheless, the fight itself was very well-received. Neither fighter wasted any time in their efforts to assert themselves on the other in the early going, while the pendulum swung back and forth through the middle rounds. The bout then reached a sizzling crescendo in the latter stages as the two exchanged furiously in an effort to do enough to win a close contest.
CompuBox stats showed Golovkin was the busier fighter, landing 218 of 703 thrown (31%), while Álvarez had the edge in accuracy, landing 169 of 505 thrown (33%). On a round-by-round basis, Golovkin outlanded Álvarez in 10 of the 12, making Byrd's scorecard even more difficult to fathom.
The fight surpassed Mayweather-Álvarez to achieve the third highest gate in boxing history. ESPN reported the fight generated $27,059,850 from 17,318 tickets sold.
Fight 2
Under the circumstances, a rematch was a must. And it took place at the same venue, almost a year to the date of the first showdown.
Only Alvarez had a rematch option in the contract, which needed to be triggered within three weeks of the first fight. Nonetheless, all parties appeared eager to run it back, and the WBC also ordered a return bout in an announcement on Oct. 2 of that year.
After several dates were considered, the fight landed on Sept. 15, 2018, when a positive test for a banned substance and subsequent suspension for Canelo scuppered hopes of staging it on Cinco de Mayo weekend.
In front of a sell-out crowd of 21,965, this time Canelo defeated Golovkin via majority decision, with the result once again disputed by many. Alvarez was given the nod by judges Dave Moretti and Steve Weisfeld, 115-113 apiece, while third judge Glenn Fieldman had it a draw at 114-114.
After being branded a "runner" by "Triple G" and his team after the first fight, Alvarez was more aggressive this time around which appeared to curry favor with the judges. And though the early stages saw both try to establish their jab, it became an exciting war of attrition as things progressed with the duo withstanding stiff shots from one another.
The rematch drew a live gate of $23,473,500 from 16,732 tickets sold. This was lower than the first fight, and it sold 1.1 million PPV buys, also lower than the first bout. However, due to being priced at $84.95, it generated more revenue at roughly $94 million.
With neither contest being truly decisive yet delivering the goods from a quality and drama standpoint, a trilogy has been discussed ever since.
Will there be a third fight?
Both fighters have expressed an interest in doing it one more time. Talks have even been held. However, since then Canelo has split from Oscar De La Hoya and Golden Boy Promotions, meaning he would likely begin discussions all over again if he and Golovkin emerge victorious this month.
And that will be easier said than done: both Smith and Szeremeta are unbeaten as professionals, so in order to maximize interest in the GGG-Canelo trilogy, both the British and Polish competitors would need to be introduced to defeat for the first time.
Should both Canelo and Golovkin be defeated, there's a chance they'll remain equally dependent on each other to bounce back, and could agree to a Cinco de Mayo 2021 fight in order to remain at the top of the sport's list of box office attractions. That said, a pair of December defeats could guarantee the third fight sits beneath the first two on the all-time financial charts.
There is also, of course, the small matter of COVID-19. Fans are slowly returning to boxing events in small numbers, and Canelo-Smith will use the Alamodome's size to sell a reasonable amount of tickets, at a fraction of the venue's full capacity. For now, there's no guarantee we will have packed houses Stateside any time soon. And it may even be later than 2021.