Zurdo Ramirez On Canelo-GGG Trilogy: I Think He’s Going To Knock Out Golovkin

Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramírez can’t imagine having to clean up any more mess on behalf of his most famous countryman.

The undefeated former WBO super middleweight champion and current light heavyweight title contender cannot imagine a scenario in which Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez (57-2-2, 39KOs) suffers a second straight loss. Alvarez returns to the ring and to the super middleweight division, where he defends his undisputed championship in a highly anticipated trilogy clash with Gennadiy ‘GGG’ Golovkin (42-1-1, 37KOs).

The third fight between the longtime rivals takes place this Saturday on DAZN Pay-Per-View and PPV.com from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The same venue was the site of their questionable 12-round draw in September 2017 and Alvarez’s narrow points win in their September 2018 rematch. WBA Dmitry Bivol (20-0, 11 KOs) atop a DAZN pay-per-view on May 7, though Ramirez believes the ingredients are in place for the Mexican superstar to shine.

“It is a great opportunity for Canelo. I think he is going to knock out Golovkin,” Ramirez told BoxingScene.com. “He’s coming back down to super middleweight, he’s very strong at 168.”

Alvarez became the first undisputed super middleweight champion in the history of the sport following his 11th-round knockout of undefeated Caleb Plant on Nov. 6 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The feat capped an impressive run by Álvarez de Guadalajara, who overcame three undefeated champions—Callum Smith, Billy Joe Saunders and Plant—to completely unify the division, and in a span of just eleven months.

The win over Plant extended Alvarez’s undefeated streak to 16 fights, though it was stopped in his bitter loss to Bivol, which was much closer on the scorecards than the in-ring action suggested. The silver lining was that Bivol was still available for Ramirez, a 31-year-old southpaw from Mazatlan, Mexico, to enforce his mandatory challenger status for the WBA light heavyweight title on the line in their clash Nov. 5 on DAZN. from Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Ramirez has already vowed to beat Bivol on behalf of Alvarez and for all Mexican boxing fans.

At the time, he believes his own title win will mark as an extension of Alvarez’s own return to glory for his boxing-rich nation.

“I like Golovkin, but I think Canelo has to win this fight,” Ramirez said. “He knows that he needs to win this fight.”

“It is a great opportunity for Canelo. I think she’s going to knock him out. He is coming back down to super middleweight, he is very strong at 168. I like Golovkin but I think Canelo has to win this fight. He needs to win this fight.”

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox