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Gennady Golovkin set for Oct. 17 PPV bout against David Lemieux

Gennady Golovkin set for Oct. 17 PPV bout against David Lemieux

The biggest fight of Gennady Golovkin's memorable career is set, a middleweight championship unification bout with David Lemieux on Oct. 17 at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Golovkin, who is 33-0 with 30 knockouts, is facing his most formidable challenger in Lemieux, a slugger who won the vacant IBF title in June when he knocked Hassan N'Dam down four times en route to a unanimous decision.

The bout will mark Golovkin's debut as a headliner on HBO Pay-Per-View. The IBF, WBA and interim WBC belts will be at stake. The WBC gave its champion, Miguel Cotto, an exception to face Canelo Alvarez instead of Golovkin, with the proviso that the winner defend against Golovkin. That bout is expected to be held in November.

Promoter Oscar De La Hoya of Golden Boy said the Cotto-Alvarez fight is just about at the finish line, with it looking like it will be in November in Las Vegas.

That, along with the Golovkin-Lemieux fight, sets the stage for a pair of major shows in the middleweight division in the fall.

IBF middleweight champion David Lemieux (Photo by Alex Goodlett/Getty Images)
IBF middleweight champion David Lemieux (Photo by Alex Goodlett/Getty Images)

"When it became clear to us that Cotto was looking for an exception to fight Canelo, the Lemieux fight became our priority," Golovkin promoter Tom Loeffler of K2 said. "Lemieux won that IBF belt and is the kind of fighter we want to face. He's got a title and he's one of the most exciting fighters to watch out there."

The bout will pit two of the sport's most exciting fighters. Golovkin, who has won the hearts of boxing fans with his pulverizing punching power and engaging personality, has scored 20 consecutive knockouts. Lemieux has won nine in a row, including seven by stoppage, since back-to-back losses in 2011.

He's coming off wins over N'Dam and Gabriel Rosado in his last two outings.

Lemieux is based in Montreal and having the fight in New York makes it easy for his fans to see him in person.

"We launched Gennady [in the U.S.] in New York and it's the biggest stage in the world," Loeffler said. "He has established himself as a star and as someone who can carry a pay-per-view and it makes sense to do it with this kind of fight."

None of the undercard fights were announced, though De La Hoya said it's likely that Roman "Chocolatito" Gonzalez will appear on the undercard.

Golovkin will be the favorite in the main event, but De La Hoya said not to overlook Lemieux's chances.

"I think he has a great shot to shock the world and beat Triple-G because he can bang and knock you out with either hand," De La Hoya said. "He has a really, really good shot in my opinion. I love his hard, fast, stiff jab. I was there [in Montreal] for the N'Dam fight and I saw up close how good that jab is.

"He understands the danger he's facing, but he knows if he hits Triple-G, he can take him out, so he knows it's a fight he can win."