Gennady Golovkin believes his unification bout with David Lemieux on Saturday will retrieve the interests of fight fans in boxing matches. Golovkin, the reigning World Boxing Association (WBA) and World Boxing Council (WBC) middleweight champion, will battle out International Boxing Federation (IBF) middleweight titlist Lemieux in their first pay-per-view (HBO PPV) match at Madison Square Garden on Saturday.

Golovkin (33-0, 30 KOs) claimed that his bout with Lemieux (34-2, 31 KOs) will be a new story for boxing after some fight fans lost their interest in the sport due to a disappointing display of the mega-fight between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. in May.

"I think it's very good for boxing because I can remember when boxing was very famous,” Golovkin said, reports ABC News. “Now there's not as much interest, but this is a new story for boxing."

“GGG” will head into pay-per-view territory, where he is considered as the heavy favourite to win against Lemieux, but the undefeated Kazakh is aware he could not take the Canadian fighter lightly in the “biggest test” of his impressive boxing career.

Golovkin also has the chance to fight the winner in November’s clash between Miguel Cotto and Saul “Canelo” Alvarez in what could be a potential big money fight. However, according to Tim Dahlberg, a sports columnist for The Associated Press, Golovkin must take care first of Lemieux, who plans to use an arsenal of tactics to beat the baby-faced Kazakh.

Meanwhile, Lemieux, whose two defeats came in back-to-back fights in 2011, is confident he could stage an upset over Golovkin come fight night. One of his two losses came from Marco Antonio Rubio, whom Golovkin destroyed in two rounds back in 2008, followed by a loss via unanimous decision against Joachim Alcine. However, ever since Lemieux’s consecutive defeats, the Canadian international has soared to an impressive nine-match winning streak, including seven by stoppage.

"I am aware of his record but I am also aware of who I am and what I can bring to the table,” Lemieux told Sky Sports. “My concern is the present and making sure I win on October 17."

Contact the writer at feedback@ibtimes.com.au, or let us know what you think below.

RELATED STORIES