Golovkin: “I am happy to have a real opponent in Jacobs”

Middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin couldn’t help but smile Wednesday when discussing his fight against Daniel Jacobs on March 18 at Madison Square Garden in New York City (on HBO pay-per-view).

Golovkin is coming off a frustrating year in which fighters such as Canelo Alvarez and Chris Eubank Jr. said they wanted to fight him, but did not sign up for the challenge. “Too much talking; too much trash talking,” Golovkin said. “And nothing true. Right now, it’s more interesting because I know who Daniel Jacobs is,” said Golovkin, who, along with Jacobs, played host to a news conference. “I know he is champion. He’s true middleweight. Now, it’s very interesting.”

Golovkin is 36-0 with 33 knockouts and has stopped his past 23 opponents inside the distance. Jacobs, of Brooklyn, is 32-1 with 29 knockouts, meaning he can also punch very hard.

“Obviously, when you think about what all I bring to the table, I think about certain things, that being one of them,” Jacobs said. “But I just know that it takes a real strong mind and strong mental state to be able to go in there and defeat Gennady Golovkin.”